Ministry

Ministry is the international journal of the

Seventh-day Adventist Ministerial Association and has been
published since 1928.

Association Secretary Pastoral Assistant Editors

The return ofJesus: The God who is coming James A. Cress
The final and full revealing of God Editor
Willmore D. Eva
Angel Manuel Rodriguez Assistant Editor
Julia W. Norcott
12 Editorial Assistant
Sheila Draper
The significance of the Second Coming Professional Growth and
Inter-church Relations
What [he Second Coming accomplishes Nikolaus Satelmajer
Hans K. LaRondelle Contributing Editors
Sharon Cress
Peter Prime
18 Joel Sarli
Kit Watts
Indicators of the end time: Are the "signs" really signs? Consulting Editors
The role of signs as Christians await the Second Coming Matthew Bediako, Ben
Clausen, Raoul Dederen,
Jon Paulien Teofilo Ferreira, Ron Flowers,
John M. Fowler, Michael
Hasei, Roland Hegstad,
24 Kathleen Kuntaraf, Ekkehardt
Mueller, Jan Paulsen, Robert
The Second Coming: Knowing and not knowing Peach, George Reid, Angel
Rodriguez, Penny Shell,
John C. Cress, Fredrick Russell,
Maylan Schurch, Loren Seibold
International Advisors
A. Abdulmajid, Alejandro Bullon,
Jaime Castrejon, Victor P.
Krushenitsky, Cartos Martin,
Gabriel Maurer, Joel Musvosvi,
David Osborne, Paul Ratsara,
Peter Roennfeldt, John Wiilmott,
Eric Winter, R. A. Zeeman
Pastoral Advisors
Leslie Baumgartner, S. Peter
Campbell, Miguel A. Cerna,
Jeanne Hartwell, Mitchell
Henson, Greg Nelson, Norma
Osborn, Leslie Pollard, Dan
Smith, Steve Willsey
Advertising
Editorial Office
Subscriptions and Circulation
Jeannette Calbi
Resources
Cathy Payne
Cover Illustration
John Knox

What we may know and not know about Jesus' second coming William Shea, Russell
Staples, Richard Tibbits,
John S. Nixon Edward Zinke

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Adventist approaches to the Second Coming order, send name, address, and payment to
What Seventh-day Adventists may learn from their past Jeannette Calbi, Ministry Subscriptions, 12501 Old
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34 telephone: 301-680-6503.
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Richard M. Davidson Ministry (ISSN 0026-5314), the international journal
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2 Ministry/June-July 2000
Generation gap in the church
I read with interest the question
naire associated with Townend's
article, "Can Disparate Generations
Coexist in the Church?" (August
1999). My interest turned to shock
when I got to question 13. Although I
am well over 50, my gap is not with
the students, but with the majority
(63 percent) of my fellow "oldies."
Can anyone explain to me how
you can be a Seventh-day Adventist
without being a Christian? In my
simplistic reasoning one would not
only have to be a Christian, but would
have to be among the most dedicated
and sincere Christians to be convicted
of the truths embraced by the
Adventist Church. Rod Leiske,
Moxee, Washington.
Evangelism and church planting
I agree with Pastor Gladden
("Evangelism and Church Planting,"
October 1999)
that we should
develop a
greater evange
listic thrust
through sensible
church planting.
But I cannot
agree with
Gladden that we assign our best
pastors to do the work. A well-known
"best pastor" in our conference has
openly confessed to me that he could
not do what I am doing. His gift is in
one area, mine is in another. I could
not take that pastor's place and he
would not fit in my place. God has
placed us where our gifts suit the task.
However, the task is not necessarily
that of the "best minister." Of the
three church plants in which I have
been involved the successful plant is
based on a dedicated member couple.
My role is that of resource provider,
source of encouragement and of
spiritual renewal. My experience has
shown that a church plant takes place
when a consecrated pair or more of
missionaries enter an area. This team
works on the basis that they are
excellent personal workers who make
friends and witness to their Father
and Savior. They then move into an
evangelistic setting where the Spirit
teaches, convicts, and leads people to
the foot of the cross.
Gladden also suggests that we look
to the demographics of an area to plant
a church. My understanding is that the
area is not the important issue. These
days people make their friendships and
relationships on the basis of who they
are working with or meet at the shops.
Neighbor friendships are not so
common. What counts is not the
friendly estate but the person. I would
call for our conferences to identify
members with the specific gifts to plant
a church. They should then be linked
into small groups of two or three
dedicated families, trained for service
and then asked to work in a specific
area. These people would then be
teamed up with a pastor who would
support them. Peter Jeynes, Kendal,
Cumbria, England.
Sermon grammar
Maylan Schurch's article "Brush
Up Your Sermon Grammar" (Decem
ber 1999) is the first of its kind I have
read in a professional ministry journal!
Many pastors think proper usage is not
important, but it is. I appreciate your
calling us to a higher standard.
Stephen Gifford, president, Texas
Conference of Seventh-day Adventists,
Alvarado, Texas.
Afraid of the gospel?
I was moved by the cover story
"Are We Afraid of the Gospel?" by
Stuart Tyner (December 1999).
Through the years I have been
perplexed as to why, when the gospel
is preached, the result for some has
been a loosening of commitment to
the Sabbath and other aspects of the
practical Christian life.
I have come to the conclusion that
when the ancient prophets, as well as
Jesus, John the Baptist, Peter, and Paul
preached, there was a word that was
included that is often absent in the
presentation of the gospel today:
repentance. That word makes the
gospel functional in the life of the
believer. It is just as futile to accept the
gospel without repentance as it is to try
to repent without accepting the
gospel. Dick OTfill, Orlando, Florida.
Appreciation
I just finished reading and re
reading several articles from Ministry
and I'm writing to say thanks for all
you do to make Ministry a practical,
inspiring, and thought-provoking
journal. I especially appreciated "Why
the Seventh Day?" (Will Eva, July and
September
1999), "Things
That Matter,"
(Will Eva,
December
1999), "Are We
Afraid of the
Gospel?" (Stuart
Tyner, December
1999), and "A Fresh Look at the
Dynamics of Inspiration" (Richard
Coffen, December 1999 and February
2000). I found it a bit ironic that the
editorial "Things That Matter" and
continued on p. 58

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and faith in a way that will provide inspiration and help to you as clergy. We hope you will accept this journal as our outstretched hand to you. Look over our shoulder,
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Ministry/June-July 2000 3
 Jl r une29-July8
marks the
assembling
of the fifty-
seventh General
Conference
Session of the
Seventh-day
Adventist Church, in Toronto,
Canada. In celebration of this
landmark event, Ministry has pre
pared this special edition, venerating
the promised verity of the second
coming of Jesus our Lord.
In connection with this majestic
theme I have a modest pinch of
memory from boyhood. I recall my
father singing a particular song during
family worship on Friday evenings. As
all four of us sang, my mother playing
the piano, I would watch him through
the corner of my eye. Even though I
was not conscious of the significance of
what was happening as I stole my
glances, there was something unques
tionably alive that came over him in his
singing of this song. He would try to
maintain his inherited sense of
decorum. But by the time we got a little
way into the opening verse, all the old
song said and meant would take over
him. His face and his voice would take
on a particular, unselfconscious ardor
as he sang:
"I saw one weary, sad, and torn,
with eager steps press on the way,
Who long the hallowed cross had borne,
still looking for the promised day;
While many a line of grief and care,
upon his brow was furrowed there;
I asked what buoyed his spirits up,
'O this!' said he 'the blessed hope"'1
A transforming expectation
The "blessed hope" (Titus 2:13)
is a transforming longing that surges
intensely in the soul that has come to
know it and believe in it.
Without a doubt, this quality of
anguished, yearning hope is part of
what the Spirit has placed in the
hearts of all who have given them-
4 Ministry/June-July 2000
blessed
selves to this expectation. Once the
reality of the promise of all promises
has brushed against our hearts and
taken root, those who in it hear the
voice of the Lord can never be the
same again. For we seem to hear for
ourselves Jesus' own eloquent
pronouncement," 'I will come again'"
(John 14:3, NASB).
Simply embracing the implica
tions of the promise, feeling its full
impact and believing it, alters our
worldview in a way that nothing else
can. It is indeed a stupendous and a
radical thing to allow into the
individual heart, let alone into the
being of a world community.
Looking back
Looking back across the centuries
we can see it still new and fresh. The
sublime, impassioned voices go back
far into an ancient antiquity of
conviction and sing more sublimely
today in the souls of those of us closer
than ever to the moment of truth. The
voices sing to us of a sacred pact God
has with us humans. They even sing
from the heart of the cauldron of this
planet's severest trial:" 'And as for me,
I know that my Redeemer lives, and at
the last He will take His stand on the
earth. Even after my skin is destroyed,
yet from my flesh I shall see God'"
(Jobl9:25-27,NASB).
And the poet-prophets, whether
referring to the first or the second
coming of Jesus, or both, picked up on
the celestial vow of our God: "Let the
heavens rejoice, and let the earth be
glad... Before the Lord: for he cometh,
for he cometh to judge the earth: he
shall judge the world with righteous
ness, and the people with his truth"
(Psalm 96:11-13)."He will swallowup
death in victory; and the Lord God will
wipe away tears from off all faces....
And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this
is our God; we have waited for him, and
he will save us: this is the Lord; we have
waited for him, we will be glad and
rejoice in his salvation" (Isa. 25:8,9).
And there was the pivotal
moment when, having finished His
salvation work on earth, Jesus was
taken up from His disciples, and "two
men ... in white" (Acts 1:10) were
sent to speak to their bewilderment
and ours: "This same Jesus, which is
taken up from you into heaven, shall
so come in like manner as ye have
seen him go into heaven" (verse 11).
The prophet John ends the
written canon with:" 'The kingdom
of the world has become the kingdom
of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He
will reign forever and ever'" (Rev.
11:15, NASB), and finally, "Surely I
come quickly. Amen. Even so, come,
Lord Jesus" (22:20).
The blessed hope has, throughout
all the ages been the most precious
anticipation of the followers of the
Lamb. From dungeons and torture, in
writing and in preaching, in chaos and
crisis and perhaps best of all, in the
mundaneness of the everyday life of
the commonest of Christians, the
blessed hope has continued to restore,
encourage, and transform.
John Calvin urged believers "not
to hesitate, ardently desiring the day of
Christ's coming as of all events most
auspicious." "Has not the Lord Jesus
carried up our flesh into heaven? and
shall He not return? We know that He
shall return, and with what expedi
tion," said John Knox. And Nicholas
Ridley affirmed that "the whole world
without doubt this I do believe, and
therefore I say it draws to an end."
Martin Luther said, "I persuade myself
verily, that the day of the judgment will
not be absent full three hundred years.
God will not, cannot, suffer this wicked
world much longer."2
Keeping the hope intact
Discovering this predictive
assertion in Luther is interesting,
bringing up a collection of conflicting
thoughts and feelings in me. Luther's
time calculation regarding the
judgment and the second coming of
Jesus, though an admirably moderate
one, does tend to walk on the edges of
a despoiling tendency that has
plagued the ebb and flow of Christian
history and particularly that of the
Seventh-day Adventist community.
Luther said that he believed "verily"
that because God could not possibly
endure "this wicked world much
longer," God would intervene with
judgment within three hundred years.
The fact is that along with a host of
other apocalyptic calculators, Martin
Luther was simply wrong in his
forecast.
Though, in the light of biblical
prophecy, we may know that the end
is always "near, even at the doors,"
since the first coming of Jesus we have
indeed been living in the time of the
end and that "He that shall come will
come and will not tarry," nevertheless
we are wrong when we attempt to
assign specific time limits to the hour
oftheeschaton.
In answer to the "when" question
of His disciples," 'Tell us, when will
these things be, and what will be the
sign of Your coming, and of the end
of the age?'" (Matt. 24:3, NASB) Jesus
said explicitly and repeatedly, that" 'no
one knows, not even the angels of
heaven nor the Son, but the Father
alone'" (verse 36, NASB).
This is not an obscure verse in the
Bible that can be interpretively
manipulated to accommodate our
desire to produce a specific time for
Jesus' coming. Looking carefully at the
simple narrative structure of Matthew
24, it is clear that Jesus, in the light of
His disciples' question, considered it a
priority to emphasize the need for the
Christian disciple to always "be ready"
exactly because they (we) would never
know beforehand the actual time of
the parousia (read again verses 36,39,
42,43,44, and 45, along with the
thrust of the parable of the ten virgins
in 25:1-13).
Reading Matthew 24, one can see
that the only way of knowing when
Jesus is to come is by properly reading
the signs He describes and not the
apocalyptic prophecies with calendar
in hand. The nature of these signs
0
nee the
reality of the promise of all
promises has brushed against our
hearts and taken root, those who
in it hear the voice of the Lord
can never be the same again.
seem to be purposely designed to take
us only so far a genuinely healthy
distance, spiritually speaking in our
attempts to calculate to any exact
degree, the actual "when" of Jesus'
arrival.
The motive for stopping so
abruptly in the midst of this editorial
celebration of the blessed hope to take
up this question of predicting the
time of the Second Coming, is not of
course to find fault with Martin
Luther, or to bring up a discordant
argument of some kind. The point is
to insist that the most sincere and
informed Christians are subject to
making assertions that are ill-founded
and above all, in the long run,
seriously damaging to the blessed
hope which struggles to find a
foothold in the hearts of those
searching for a worthy hope.
We may be justly concerned that
all of the time setting that has gone on
among Adventists, let alone across the
centuries of Christian history, has had
a way of blunting our faith in the
blessed hope. Time setting has a way
of boldly robbing struggling people of
one of their most precious posses
sions: the sense of certainty they have
in the glorious appearing of our great
God. What a potent way of turning an
upward gaze into a downward
spiraling skepticism, or of converting
an otherwise open heart into bold
cynicism.
Someone who had lived in the fall
out of more than one agonizing
time-setting episode wrote the
following out of the crucible of those
experiences: "It [truth] will never
develop in any line that will lead us to
imagine that we may know the times
and the seasons which the Father hath
put in His own power.... There will
never again be a message for the people
of God that will be based on time.3
Let us revel in the blessed hope.
Let us glory in it, be transformed by it
and allow it to fashion our outlook
with an upward concentration. Let us
move with wisdom and a living,
present faith, nurturing a solid, urgent,
and true hope among us, so that we
will all justly stand in the long line of
witnesses, true to the blessed hope of
the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
This special celebrative issue of
Ministry is dedicated to this vision.
1 Annie R. Smith, Seventh-day Adventist
Hymnal (Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald
Pub. Assn., 1985), 441.
2 Quotes in this paragraph are cited from
Daniel T. Taylor, The Reign of Christ on Earth:
or, The Voice of the Church in All Ages, as found
in Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy
(Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press Pub. Assn.,
1888), 302-304.
3 Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, book
1 (Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald Pub.
Assn., 1958), 188.
Ministry/June-July 2000
A II

Jill

ill

':-!5s5a;i
 THE RETURN
OFJESUS:
The God who is coming
T he Old Testament contains numerous references about God actually
A appearing to human beings, either in dreams (Gen.20:3), through a
messenger (Judges 6:11), or in personal manifestations of His presence called
theophanies (theos ["God"] andphaino ["appear"])
Angel Manuel God usually comes as a warrior to
Rodriguez, Th.D., is fight and to judge the nations, or to
the associate director deliver His people from the power and
of the Biblical oppression of some enemy power (Isa.
Research Institute, 30:27;Mic. 1:3,4; 3:1,2; Zech. 14:5-11).
Silver Spring, The intervention of God in human
Maryland. history was eagerly awaited by His
people; in fact, on many occasions it
provided them their hope for the future.
The manifestations of God to individu
als, or to the people, were particularly
impressive because they were often ac
companied by extraordinary phenom
ena in the natural world, as well as by a
display of God's glory and power. Those
interventions of God in history, though
unusual, nevertheless served as models
for His future eschatological manifes
tation in human affairs.
Christ's return: The theophany
From a Christian perspective we
could suggest that those earlier
theophanies were precursors to the great
and glorious coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ at the eschaton. In many ways they
were a pallid reflection of the unprec
edented display of glory that humans will
witness at Christ's return. The Scriptures
testify that Jesus will come back in the
splendor of His divinity. He said to the
disciples that the Son of Man will come
" 'in his Father's glory with the holy an
gels' " (Mark 8:38, NIV). Shortly before
the Crucifixion He prayed," 'Now, Fa
ther, glorify me in your presence with the
glory I had with you before the world
began' " (John 17:5). The glory of the
pre-incarnated Son is the same glory that
will be displayed by Him at the Second
Coming. Peter refers to that event as the
time when Christ's "glory is revealed"
(1 Peter 4:13). His glory was concealed
during the Incarnation under the veil of
human flesh, and for now it is still con
cealed in heaven, but at the end it will be
fully revealed to the world.
In the Bible the glory of God often
refers to His character (John 1:14) and
to His unique nature, which distin-
Ministry/June-July 2000 7
guishes God from the created world.
There is simply no one like Him because
there is no other Creator; everything
that exists is part of His creation.
But His "glory" also refers to the
brightness of the impenetrable light
that surrounds His person (1 Tim.
6:16). That same glory belongs by na
ture to the Son of God and will be re
vealed, as never before, at the Parousia.
In that glorious theophany all other
theophanies find their full significance
in a manner that transcends human
imagination.
The occasional use of the term
"epiphany" in the New Testament, to
designate the return of our Lord, sup
ports the view that Christ will return to
the planet and display the glory of His
divinity. In 1 Timothy 6:14 Paul uses the
phrase "the appearing [epiphaneia] of
our Lord Jesus Christ" (cf. 2 Tim. 4:8);
in 2 Thessalonians 2:8 the terms
"epiphany" and "parousia" are com
bined to designate that same glorious
event. The Greek term epiphaneia, in
secular Greek, referred to the outward
appearance of a person but in religious
contexts it designated the appearance
and intervention of the gods on behalf
of humans.2 Interestingly, in the New
Testament, it exclusively refers to the
appearance of Jesus at the Incarnation
(2 Tim. 1:10), and particularly to His
manifestation at the Parousia. His pres
ence is indeed a religious epiphany, the
manifestation of God in human flesh
at the Incarnation and "the glorious
appearing [epiphaneia] of our great
God and Savior, Jesus Christ," at the
Second Coming (Titus 2:13,14a). One
is led to conclude that "the early Church
saw in the incarnation of Jesus Christ
as well as in his second advent the final
parousia, the personal realization of the
promised 'coming of God' " 3 an
nounced in the Old Testament.
Titus 2:13, 14 refers to the "glori
ous epiphany" of the One who is com
ing, "our great God and Savior, Jesus
Christ." His coming can be described
as glorious because the One who is re
turning is in fact "our great God and
Savior."4 Although He is still human at
His coming, Christ's glorious divinity
8 Ministry/June-July 2000
shines through His human nature in all
its unprecedented purity and power.
Again, when Jesus conies the second
time, the human race will witness the
most powerful and glorious theophany
ever seen on our planet. Our God and
Savior will explode into our time and
space in all His glory. This will indeed
be the consummation of all previous
theophanies.5
Christ's theophany transforms nature
The uniqueness of the theophany of
Christ at His second coming can be bet
ter grasped by contrasting it with those
T ML hen
he return of
our God and Savior in glory
will break the mold of all
previous theophanies in that it
will be witnessed by every
human being on earth.
recorded in the Old Testament, which
were geographically limited in their ex
tent. For instance, He appeared to
Abraham near the trees of Mamre (Gen.
18:1), to Moses in the wilderness (Exod.
3:1), and partially at least to the people
of Israel at Mount Sinai (19:16-18). Even
God's surpassing presence in human
form in Jesus was limited to Palestine.
Often the manifestation of the pres
ence of the Lord was accompanied by
the sound of trumpets and by extraor
dinary natural phenomena: The ground
was shaken and there were thick clouds
and fearful fire (19:18, 19). Nature
seemed to have been totally unable to
contain the awesome presence of the
Creator as He came to visit it.
In contrast with these localized ap
pearances, the return of the Lord Jesus
Christ at the eschaton transcends geo
graphical boundaries and encompasses
in a mysterious way the totality of earth.
This universal dimension was absent in
all other theophanies recorded in the
Bible, making it the consummation of
God's presence in this world. When
God's visible presence is felt within this
world, the theophanic elements men
tioned in the Bible acquire universal
dimensions. The earthquake affects ev
ery mountain and island of the world
(Rev. 6:14), the sound of the trumpet
reaches every corner of the planet
(1 Thess. 4:16; Matt. 24:31), and fire en
velops the earth (2 Peter 3:10). Nothing
escapes the upheaval of nature at the
moment of the return of our great God
and Savior.
The intention of the visible presence
of God within nature is to transform it,
and to redeem it from the oppression of
sin. His manifestation within nature may
take the shape of fire, but it is a purifying
fire. For Moses, the bush was on fire, but
in the process it was incorporated by God
into the realm of the holy (Exod. 3:4-5).
At the manifestation of Christ's divine
power, the fire of His presence engulfs
nature, not to destroy it but to redeem it.
Paul indicates that through the eschato-
logical theophany, creation "will be lib
erated from its bondage to decay and
brought into the glorious freedom of the
children of God" (Rom. 8:21).
Christ's theophany is inescapably
visible
Secondly, the apparitions of God
recorded in the Bible were experienced
by a limited group of people. Abraham,
Moses, and the Israelites encountered His
presence in personal ways, but also Job
(38:1),Elijah (1 Kings 19:ll-13),Isaiah
(Isa. 6:1-4), and others. Most of the time,
the presence of the Lord was manifested
only to individuals. But undoubtedly, the
greatest theophany recorded in the Old
Testament took place on Mount Sinai,
when "Moses led the people out of the
camp to meet with God, and they stood
at the foot of the mountain. Mount Sinai
was covered with smoke, because the
Lord descended on it in fire. . . . The
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whole mountain trembled violently, and 1:7). That theophany will be the great
the sound of trumpets grew louder and est saving show of light and sound ever
louder" (Exod. 19:17,19). That day the experienced by any human being; the
Lord appeared "in the sight of all the glory, the light, and the sounds of
people" (19:11). This time God appeared heaven intersect the darkness and ca
not only to the leaders and mediators of cophony of a sinful planet. Sinners will
the people but directly to the totality of be shaken to the core of their being as
the religious community. No other na they see the Crucified One coming
tion had had a close encounter with their back dressed now in the splendor of
gods like the Israelites had with theirs the same glory He had with the Father
(Deut. 4:32-34). from eternity (Rev. 6:15). He will be
Yet the return of our God and Sav seen by His enemies as the Divine War
ior in glory will break the mold of all rior whose sole presence is powerful
previous theophanies in that it will be enough to defeat and destroy them
witnessed by every human being on (2 Thess. 2:8). At the sight of such a
earth. Jesus stated that" 'all the nations Warrior the forces of evil will lose their
of the earth ... will see the Son of Man will to fight, and possessed by terror
coming on the clouds of the sky, with they will unsuccessfully seek a place of
power and great glory'" (Matt. 24:30). refuge to hide them from the universal
John conveys, in crystal clear language, manifestation of God at the Second
the global display of Christ's divinity at Coming. There is no way to escape the
the Parousia: "He is coming with the visible presence of God because there
clouds, and every eye will see him" (Rev. is no place on the planet where it is not
forcefully felt; at that moment there is
no hiding place for sin and unrepen
tant sinners.
The visibility of such theophany
engulfs the planet in an explosion of
light that makes the presence of Jesus
real and visible and moves the re
deemed to shout, " 'Surely this is our
God; we trusted in him, and he saved
us'" (Isa. 25:9). They will have an un
paralleled encounter with God. Then,
one of the deepest longings of the hu
man heart to see the Creator and
Redeemer will be fully satisfied. The
Divine Warrior will be seen by them not
as an enemy but as the One who is com
ing from His heavenly dwelling to
liberate them from the oppressive pres
ence of evil. To see Him is to experience
the consummation of the freedom He
gave them during His first advent.
Christ's theophany and permanent
re-unification
Third, biblical theophanies are lim
ited by time constraints. God appeared
in a visible way to individuals for a short
period of time. There were both elements
of encounter and elements of separation,
a coming together and a departure. Con
sequently, there was not in those
theophanies a permanent re-unification
of God and humans in a face-to-face re
lationship. The plan of redemption had
not yet reached its ultimate goal. But at
the second coming of Jesus, the plan of
salvation will be fully realized and His
presence among His people will be vis
ible and permanent.
Paul points with visionary eye to
the Parousia and equates it with the
moment when "we will be with the Lord
forever" (1 Thess. 4:17). Transformed
by the power of God manifested in the
person of His Son, His servants are then
enabled to exist in His very presence.
This theophany is not simply another
theophany. Instead, it defines our new
mode of existence free from the
power of death, ushered into the realm
of the eternal, and bringing all separa
tion to a radical end (1 Cor. 15:51-54).
Living permanently in the immediate
visible presence of God will no longer
be the unexpected, extraordinary, and

10 Ministry/June-July 2000
transitory experience it has been, but
rather the normal, permanent state of
things in our new existence.
Paul makes it clear that the Great
God who is coming is the One "who gave
himself for us to redeem us from all wick
edness" (Titus 2:14). It is when the
mortal is clothed with immortality that
human nature is finally divested of the
enslaving power of wickedness and set
free to love in purity of heart. Yes, hu
mans will be able to express love in an
effortless way, free from the distorting
presence of sin in their nature.6 Entering
eternity with God requires this funda
mental transformation of human nature
because the heavenly realm is ruled by
the purity of divine love which was in
carnated in the One who is coming.
Conclusion
Christians joyfully anticipate the
eschatological coming of the Son of
God to our planet. The God who comes
is the same who was crucified for us but
now appears for us as the Divine War
rior who confronts the forces of evil and
defeats them by the power of His pres
ence. The encounter between God and
nature will result in the transformation
of the natural world, its final incorpo
ration into the glorious freedom of the
children of God. It is through Christ's
appearing that human nature will ex
perience ultimate freedom from the
inward corruption of sin, introducing
the redeemed ones into a permanent
vision of God, of which all previous
ones have been faint symbols.
1 On the subject of "the coming of
God" in the Old Testament see, Horst
Dietrich Preuss," 'Bo "'in Theological Dic
tionary of the Old Testament, vol. 2, G.
Johannes Botterweck and Helmer
Ringgren, eds. (Grand Rapids, Mich.:
Eerdmans, 1975), 44-49.
2 Rudolf Bultmann and Dieter Liihr-
mann, "Phaino" in Theological Dictionary
of the New Testament, vol. 9, Gerhard
Friedrich, ed. (Grand Rapids, Mich.:
Eerdmans, 1974), 8. P. G. Muller writes,
"The word in secular Greek already indi
cated the appearance of the saving deity and
the experience of the saving act. But it also
designated the cultic presence of the god
like ruler of the Hellenistic-Roman state
cult" ("Epiphaneia appearance," in Exegeti-
cal Dictionary of the New Testament, vol. 2,
Horst Balz and Gerhard Schneider, eds.
[Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1991],
44).
3 Muller, "Epiphaneia" 44.
4 The phrase "our great God and Sav
ior" refers only to one person, Jesus. In
Greek whenever a noun has a definite ar
ticle and is united to an indefinite noun by
the conjunction kai ("and"), the two nouns
designate the same person or thing. Besides,
the thought expressed in verse 13 is carried
on in verse 14 where the subject of the sen
tence is a singular pronoun referring to
Jesus ("who gave himself..."). See George
W. Knight III, Commentary on the Pastoral
Epistles (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans,
1992), 323.
5 Cf., Fritz Guy, "The Future and the
Present: The Meaning of the Advent Hope,"
in The Advent Hope in Scripture, and His
tory, V. Norskov Olsen, ed. (Hagerstown,
Md.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1987),
217, 218.
6 See Guy, "Meaning," 223.

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Ministry/June-July 2000 11
 rT n
\
j
rT n
i
m j
he climactic event of biblical verity is the Second Coming, when Christ
returns to judge the world and to vindicate both His dead and living elect.
Hems K. LaRondelle, The common creed of Western
Th.D., is professor Christianity, the Apostles' Creed (c.
emeritus of theology, 700), states that Jesus Christ "rose again
Seventh-day Adventist from the dead, ascended to heaven, sits
Theological Seminary, at the right hand of God the Father al
Andrews University, mighty, thence He will come to judge the
Berrien Springs, living and the dead" 1 Orthodox theo
Michigan.
logians all agree on this doctrine. One
evangelical scholar affirms, "It is the
basis of the Christian's hope, the one
event which will mark the beginning of
the completion of God's plan."2 This
high evaluation of the second advent or
parousia of Christ is justified in the light
of Paul's inspired declarations: "He
[God] has set a day when he will judge
the world with justice by the man he
has appointed. He has given proof of
this to all men by raising him from the
dead" (Acts 17:31).*
"For the Lord himself will come
down from heaven, with a loud com
mand, with the voice of the archangel
and with the trumpet call of God, and
the dead in Christ will rise first. After
that, we who are still alive and are left
will be caught up together with them
in the clouds to meet the Lord in the
air" (IThess. 4:16-17).
"This [deliverance from oppres
K .
12 Ministry/June-July 2000
sion] will happen when the Lord Jesus
is revealed from heaven in blazing fire
with his powerful angels. He will pun
ish those who do not know God and do
not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus"
(2Thess. 1:7-8).
The brief statements in Paul's letters
intend to reassure the new believers of
Christ's original promise." 'I will come
back and take you to be with me that you
also may be where I am' " (John 14:3,
emphasis added)." 'For the Son of Man
is going to come in his Father's glory with
his angels, and then he will reward each
person according to what he has done'"
(Matt. 16:27). He even placed His return
in the awesome setting of the great Day
of Yahweh, when He identified His
Parousia completely with the coming of
Israel's God:" 'They will see the Son of
Man coming on the clouds of the sky,
with power and great glory. And he will
send his angels with a loud trumpet call,
and they will gather his elect from the
four winds, from one end of the heavens
to the other'" (Matt. 24:30-31; cf. Isa.
27:12-13; 43:5-7; 56:8). The return of
Christ is the book of Revelation's central
theme (Rev. 1:7), and it portrays His
coming repeatedly as the climax of vari-
LARO N D
ous series of future events (see Rev. 6:12-
17; 14:14-20; 19:11-21). This partial
review reveals the second advent of
Christ as an essential of the New Testa
ment faith.

The foundation of the Parousia: The

resurrection of Christ
Without the glorious return of
Christ, His own promise of " 'the re
newal of ail things' " (Matt. 19:28)
would collapse. More than that, the
purpose of the first coming of Christ
would be seriously jeopardized, if not
totally lost. With compelling force, Paul
argued the unbreakable unity of the
believer's present and the believer's fu
ture salvation in Christ: "If there is no
resurrection of the dead, then not even
Christ has been raised. And if Christ has
not been raised, our preaching is use
less and so is your faith... if Christ has
not been raised, your faith is futile; you
are still in your sins. Then those also
who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost.
If only for this life we have hope in
Christ, we are to be pitied more than
all men" (1 Cor. 15:13,14, 17-19).
The apostle based the certainty of
our hope in eternal life, that is, of the
resurrection of the dead, squarely on the
bodily resurrection of Jesus. About the
historical reality of Christ's resurrection
Paul had no doubts. The risen Lord had
clearly spoken to him on the road to
Damascus and called him to be His wit
ness and apostle (see Acts 26:15-18), an
experience with far-reaching signifi
cance for the zealous Pharisee. He
considered Jesus' resurrection from the
dead as the beginning of the promised
resurrection of the saints, foretold by
Israel's prophets (see Job 19:25-27; Isa.
26:19; Dan. 12:2). Wrote R E Bruce:
"Since God had raised Jesus from the
dead, he would assuredly raise all his
people in due course more specifi
cally, at Jesus' parousia, his advent in
glory."3 Paul illustrated this spiritual
connection by calling the risen Christ
" the firstfruits of those who have fallen
asleep" (I Cor. 15:20, emphasis added).
This image reminded them of the ap
pointed feast: when a sheaf of the first
grain of the harvest was offered to God,

Ministry/June-July 2000 13
the entire harvest was holy. Paul ex
plained: "If the root is holy, so are the
branches" (Rom. 11:16). In other words,
Christ's resurrection guarantees the fu
ture raising of all "those who belong to
him" (1 Cor. 15:23).
Paul further placed the significance
of Jesus' first coming in the larger frame
work of all salvation history, declaring:
"For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all
will be made alive" (1 Cor. 15:22, em
phasis added). Here Christ is revealed
as the second Adam, the new Father of
the human race, who has determined
the future of mankind "much more"
than did Adam, just as eternal life is
"much more" than death (see also Rom.
5:14, 15). In Christ we may "rejoice in
the hope of the glory of God" (Rom.
5:2), because "Christ was raised from
the dead" and "death no longer has
mastery over him" (Rom. 6:9). The rais
ing of Christ from the dead is clearly
the indispensable foundation of all
Christian faith and hope.
Reassurances of the risen Lord Jesus
The gospel is not based merely on
the empty tomb of Jesus, but also on the
surprising appearances of the risen Lord
to His disciples (see John 20; 1 Cor.l5:5-
8) and on His outpouring of God's Spirit
on them (Acts 2:1-4). Peter, on the Day
of Pentecost, based his stirring message
to Israel entirely on the resurrection and
ascension of Christ to heaven. His point
was to explain the significance of the vis
ible outpouring of God's Spirit on the
Christ-believing Jews, in the progressive
unfolding of the divine plan of salvation
(see Acts 2:32,33). Peter announced that
the outpouring of God's Spirit, as fore
told by Joel (2:28), had now become a
present reality because of the resurrec
tion, ascension, and exaltation of Jesus
as the Lord and Messiah in heaven (Acts
2:36). Its fulfillment was not imaginary
or without evidence: the Spirit of proph
ecy was signally restored in Israel as the
sign of the Messianic age, a reality so
overwhelming and convicting that about
three thousand Jews were baptized that
day (Acts 2:41). Hendrikus Berkhof ex
plains: "It is only due to the appearances
of the risen Jesus that despair gave way
14 Ministry/June-July 2000
to a new and unusually strong faith.
Therefore the resurrection maybe called
the decisive redemptive event . . . the
Christian faith stands or falls with the
resurrection."4
In short, Christian faith in general
and Christian faith in the Parousia par
ticularly is not based on some ideology
or moral philosophy, but on undeniable
historical facts and powerful realities
demonstrated in Christ. After Pentecost,
Peter's faith remained oriented to the
n the Lord's death until he comes" ( 1 Cor.
Jhristian faith
in general and Christian faith
in the Parousia particularly is
not based on some ideology or
moral philosophy, but on
undeniable historical facts and
powerful realities
demonstrated in Christ.
personal coming of Christ: "He must
remain in heaven until the time comes
for God to restore everything, as he
promised long ago through his holy
prophets" (Acts 3:21). The promise of
the angels at Jesus' ascension confirmed
the Christian hope: " "This same Jesus,
who has been taken from you into heaven,
will come back in the same way you have
seen him go into heaven' " (Acts 1:11,
emphasis added). No invisible, spiritual,
or secret advent is predicted here, but
rather His visible and personal return
from heaven.
Early Christian worship and the
blessed hope
At His last supper, Jesus made the
solemn promise: " T tell you, I will not
drink of this fruit of the vine from now
on until that day when I drink it anew
with you in my Father's kingdom"' (Matt.
26:29, emphasis added). The connection
Jesus set here between the Lord's Supper
and the coming Messianic banquet
makes each Communion service an an
ticipation of the Second Coming. Paul
recognized this forward-looking aspect
of the Lord's Supper, when he wrote his
instruction: "For whenever you eat this
bread and drink this cup, you proclaim
11:26, emphasis added). This valuable
link of the Lord's Supper with His prom
ised return is often lost by a one-sided
emphasis on the atoning death of Jesus.
Paul concluded his letter to the
Corinthians with an ancient Aramaic
prayer, which New Testament scholar
ship believes was part of the earliest
Aramaic-speaking church: "Mara-
natha!," meaning "Come, O Lord/"
(1 Cor. 16:22, emphasis added). Oscar
Cullmann comments: "We know that all
worship in early Christianity was consid
ered an anticipation in the present of the
Kingdom of God . . . This connection
between present and future reality . . .
represents the peculiar character and
greatness of the early Church's worship."5
This forward-looking attitude of the
original Christian worship is evident in
the apostolic letters. In his earliest letter
(A.D. 50), Paul reported that the church
in Thessalonica had truly "turned to God
from idols to serve the living and true
God, and to wait for his Son from heaven,
whom he raised from the dead -Jesus,
who rescues us from the coming wrath"
(1 Thess. 1:9,10, emphasis added). At the
end of the first century, long after Pente
cost, John ended the book of Revelation
with this personal assurance of the risen
Lord: "He who testifies to these things
says, 'Yes, I am coming soon.'" John re
sponded immediately: "Amen. Come,
Lord Jesus" (Rev. 22:20, emphasis added).
The Advent hope was a living hope that
determined the faith and worship of the
early church.
 '
fjS*~,.M
pit
,3 ^ftsfi
| fe^JJl
I*
The sanctifying power of the
Christian hope
The apostles did not teach the Sec
ond Coming as an isolated dogma but
as a vital truth that was to shape the
believer's life. Hope in the Parousia was
to be experienced as a sanctifying power
that would prepare them with confi
dence for the advent of Christ. Paul
implied that sanctification, like justifi
cation, was both a prerequisite and a
guarantee of glorification, when he
stated succinctly: "Christ in you, the
hope of glory" (Col. 1:27, or translated:
"Christ in you, the hope of a glory to
come" (NEB). This phrase indicates
again an organic link between present
and future salvation. In Christ there is
in essence only one salvation, to be re
alized in a present and a future phase.
The future is assured in the present re
demption by one and the same faith in
Christ. Paul explained this assurance of
salvation in a masterly way: "And if the
Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the
dead is living in you, he who raised
Christ from the dead will also give life
to your mortal bodies through his
Spirit, who lives in you" (Rom. 8:11).
What an assurance, anchored in a liv
ing faith and experience with Christ!
The Christian may already now taste
"the powers of the coming age" (Heb.
6:5). Bruce clarifies: "Inwardly they al
ready enjoyed a foretaste of the coming
resurrection life eternal life because
they were united by faith to the risen
Christ, incorporated in him."6 This
makes all Christian believers citizens of
heaven, from where they eagerly await
the glorious appearing of their Lord (see
Phil. 3:20-21; Tit. 2:13). This "blessed
hope" transforms the behavior of be
lievers here and now.
When John saw how a new Greek
philosophy, called Docetism, began to
infiltrate the church and to undermine
practical Christianity, he urged his
churches in Asia Minor to "continue in
him, so that when he appears we may
be confident and unashamed before
him at his coming" (1 John 2:28). He
then pointed to their moral obligation:
"Everyone who has this hope in him pu
rifies himself, just as he is pure" (1 John
16 Ministry/June-July 2000
3:3). Clearly, Christian hope requires a
Christ-centered, Christlike life.
Peter is known as "the apostle of
hope," because he emphasized that God
"has given us new birth into a living hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ
from the dead, and into an inheritance
that can never perish, spoil or fade kept
in heaven for you... until the coming of
the salvation that is ready to be revealed
in the last time" (1 Peter 1:3-5). He
stressed, however, specific Christian
qualities that are essential for entering
the eternal kingdom of Christ: goodness,
n
- .he apostles
did not teach the Second
Coming as an isolated
dogma but as a vital truth
that was to shape the
believer's life.
knowledge, self-control, perseverance,
godliness, brotherly kindness, and love
(see 2 Peter 1:5-11). His appeal was there
fore: "Since everything will be destroyed
in this way [by fire, volume 10], what
kind ofpeople ought you to be? You ought
to live holy and godly lives as you look for
ward to the day of God and speed its
coming" (2 Peter 3:11, 12, emphasis
added). The eager expectancy of the Sec
ond Coming was and still is an urgent
motivation to remain in Christ and to
become more Christlike.
A panoramic view of the Parousia
The way Jesus Himself had de
scribed His return in the glory of God in
Matthew 24:29-31, and later amplified by
His portrayals in the Apocalypse, reveals
that the parousia of Christ will consum
mate the prophecies of the Day of
Yahweh of Israel's prophets. No passage
in the Gospels is more saturated with al
lusions to Israel's prophetic language
than Matthew 24:29-31. In fact, "no
where else in the New Testament is there
a parousia scene composed of six apoca
lyptic motifs as we find in Matt 24:29-
31 ."7 This is a theophany, the Day of the
Lord, the Son of Man in Daniel 7, the
cosmic signs, the clouds of heaven, and
the gathering of the elect. This observa
tion gives Jesus' portrayal of His return
a unique theological significance. It fo
cuses all the apocalyptic signs on the per
son of Jesus and on His parousia. None
of these signs and manifestations were
intended as mere symbols. All people will
see, hear, and feel the dramatic manifes
tation of the Parousia. "To move his read
ers into an overwhelming feeling of
reality,"8 is the intentional meaning of
Matthew's Christocentric eschatology.
His parousia portrayal in Matthew 24
"blossoms as an apocalyptic flower on
the trunk and branches" of Israel's
prophecy.9
What this short review shows is that,
far from being a mere appendix,
afterword, or footnote to faith, the sec
ond coming of Jesus, the Second Advent,
remains the great hope of all who,
thro ugh Jesus, have any hope at all.
* All Scripture citations are from the
New International Version.
1 J. H. Leith, Creeds of the Churches (At
lanta: John Knox Press, 1977 ), 24.
2 Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theol
ogy (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Book
House), Vol. 3,1985, 1186.
3 F.R Bruce, Paul: Apostle of the Heart
Set Free (Grand Rapids, Mich: Eerdmans,
1996), 304.
4 H. Berkhof, Christian Faith (Grand
Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1979), 307.
5 O. Cullmann, The Christology of the
New Testament (Philadelphia: Westminster,
1963), 211.
6 Brace, ibid., 304, 305.
7 Ki K. Kim, The Signs of the Parousia
(Seoul, Korea: Korean Sahmyook University)
Mon. Doct. Diss. Series, vol. 3, 1994, 364.
8 Ibid., 392.
9 Ibid., 393.
Adventist Communication Network 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, WD 20904-6600
tel 800-ACN-1119 fax 301-680-6697 e-mail acn@acnsat.prg web www.acitsat,org
 INDICATORS OF
THE END TIME:
Are "the signs" really signs?
TT hough most evangelical Christians are familiar with the biblical concept of
ML "signs" of the End, they are less sure about what to make of these "signs,"
particularly in the light of the wild and sensational claims that have accompanied
the new millennium.
Jon Paulien, Ph.D., is How can Christians distinguish
professor of New true signs from false ones? Are all these
Testament Studies at "signs" really signs? In short, will we
the Seventh-day ever know with absolute certainty that
Adventist Theological the return of Jesus is at hand?
Seminary, Andrews
University, Berrien Signs of the age
Springs, Michigan. Many world events that Christians
take as signs of the End are "signs of the
age" instead. Rather than pointing to
the date of the Second Coming, they
confirm that Jesus' predicted return at
the end of the age is secure. They en
courage us to believe that if Jesus knew
the character of the whole age in ad
vance, He will not be mistaken about
the event that brings it to a close.
When the disciples asked Jesus
(Matt. 24:3) about the "sign" of His com
ing and the end of the age, He replied,
" 'You will hear of wars and rumors of
wars, but see to it that you are not
alarmed. Such things must happen, but
the end is still to come " (Matt. 24:6 NIV,
emphasis mine). Wars and rumors of
wars made great signs of the End in Jew
ish apocalyptic,1 but in Matthew 24 they
do not herald the End; they are, instead,
18 Ministry/June-July 2000
part of what life is like before the End.
" 'Nation will rise against nation,
and kingdom against kingdom. There
will be famines and earthquakes in vari
ous places. All these are the beginning of
birth pains' " (Matt. 24:7, 8, emphasis
mine). Wars, famines, and earthquakes
do not signal the End but the begin
ning! The disciples asked for a sign of
the End, Jesus gave them signs of the
age. These "signs" were not intended to
stimulate speculation regarding the date
of the End; they were, rather, to remind
us of Jesus' words, which encourage us
to be watchful and ready for the End at
all times (Matt. 24:42-44).2
The signs have been with us
If wars, earthquakes, and famines
are signs of the age, then many "signs
of the End" have been with us from the
beginning of the Christian age. There
were false messiahs already in Jesus' day
(Acts 5:36, 37), and plenty more in the
approach to A.D. 70.3 While peace char
acterized Palestine in A.D. 31, there were
"wars and rumors of wars" throughout
the A.D. 60s. There were famines (Acts
11:28), earthquakes (Laodicea in 60
A.D., Pompeii in 63, Jerusalem in 64,
and Rome in 684), and heavenly signs.5
The New Testament contains abundant
accounts of persecution, false teachers,
and false prophets.6 Paul could even
claim that the gospel had gone to the
world within his lifetime (Col. 1:23;
Rom. 1:8; 16:26). It is no wonder, then,
that the apostles believed that they were
living in the last days (Acts 2:14-21;
Heb. 1:2; 1 Peter 1:20; 1 John 2:18).
The normalcy of the End
Compounding the issue is the ques
tion of just how unusual the events of
the End will be. There is no question that
New Testament descriptions of the final
days are momentous. People develop
strange diseases, rivers and seas turn to
blood, and humanity is subject to "glo
bal warming" of searing proportions
(Rev. 16:1-9). Nations are angry (11:18)
and confused (Luke 21:25), and the
world is seriously divided over issues of
faith (Rev. 17:14). Unusual events take
place in the sky and earthquakes, storms,
and disasters become more severe (Luke
21:26; Rev. 6:12-15; 16:18-21). There is
the deceptive confusion caused by com
peting claims to truth (Matt. 24:24-27;
Mark 13:19-23; 2 Thess. 2:8-12; Rev.
13:13,14) and direct demonic interven
tion (1 Tim. 4:1). Social unrest and
contempt for faith increase (2 Tim. 3:1-
5). 7 The people of God suffer greatly
from persecution (John 16:2; Rev. 13:15-
17; 16:4-7; 17:6). Other considerations
could be given as well.8
However, both Jesus and Paul por
tray the last days as somewhat normal
times, in spite of all the spectacular
events.9 Like before the Flood (Matt.
24:37), people will pursue their normal
round of eating and drinking; even
weddings will not be postponed (Matt.
24:38). As in the days of Lot, there will
be buying and selling (Luke 17:28),
Ministry/June-July 2000 19

which suggests that the basic economic
structure of the world remains. Plant
ing and building continues (Luke
17:28). Most people seem to have no
premonition that the End is upon them
(Matt. 24:39).
In fact, Paul wrote that the terrible
destructions associated with the Second
Coming itself (see 2 Thess. 1:5-10) will
come when people are proclaiming
"peace and safety" (1 Thess. 5:2-3). To
many, the last days may seem like a
golden age of peace and prosperity. The
troubles, disasters, social disruptions,
and persecutions of the end time will be
on the radar screen, but will not seem out
of proportion to normal times. The ma
jority, perhaps the vast majority, will be
surprised to see the End come when it
does.
We, therefore, should be cautious
in our broad and confident pronounce
ments regarding current events. But at
the same time we must remember that
the same text assures us that God's true
people will not be surprised (1 Thess.
5:4-7). The normalcy will seem that way
only to those without the eyes of Chris
tian faith.
Signs can be hard to read
It has never been easier to stay in
formed about world events. With the
Internet and all kinds of other commu
20 Ministry/June-July 2000
nication media we can quickly amass
much information. But this access poses
several problems. For one thing, we must
distinguish between sound information
and what is simply someone's empty
speculation bouncing from computer to
computer. We must become familiar with
a news source's track record, biases, and
reasons for offering the information it
does. Christians must be slow to accept
the latest report or conspiracy theory,
especially when reliable filters like major
news organizations of church publica
tions are silent on the subject.
But even when information is rea
sonably solid, it is imperative to look at
the evidence from all sides. Those who
emphasize the nearness of the End love
to talk about rising crime statistics, cata
strophic earthquakes and floods, wars
and rumors of wars, imminent economic
collapse, and declining morality. But
credibility is severely damaged when we
ignore solid contrary evidence. For ex
ample, many sincere Christians have been
predicting imminent economic collapse
since 1982. The irony is that the last sev
enteen years have witnessed the greatest
economic boom in the history of the
human race.
But what if your information is un
questionably solid, balanced, and care
fully verified? You still have to determine
whether it is of any spiritual signifi
cance. Just because events are taking a
course that reminds us of a particular
prophecy, it doesn't mean that this par
ticular event is what that prophecy was
pointing to. Just because former Ameri
can President Bush proclaimed a New
World Order, it doesn't prevent a new
world disorder from being just around
the corner; and even if this New World
Order came, it doesn't mean it's the
eschatological one we've been expect
ing. We damage the credibility of all
preaching about the End when we use
inaccurate information, are selective in
our use of solid evidence, or make ex
aggerated claims that are inappropriate
to our level of expertise.
True signs of the end of time
Adventist expectation has tended
toward the sensational. We have cried
"wolf" too many times during the last
one hundred and fifty years. Many have
become weary of hearing about the
"signs." But the subject of end-time
signs cannot be ignored. The same
chapter in which Jesus says that no one
knows the day or the hour (Matt. 24:36)
also offers indications as to when the
coming is near (verse 33). But what is
"near" in actual time? A day? Year? De
cade? Century?
In A.D. 95, the author of Revelation
considered Jesus' coming to be near (Rev.
1:3; 22:10,12). So, a Western chronologi
cal understanding of "nearness" is clearly
false in light of the passage of 2,000 years
since the New Testament was written.
From an Eastern perspective, nearness
seems to be much more a state of mind
than a chronological datum.
But is there any sense in which the
coming of Jesus is chronologically
nearer now than it was in the first cen
tury? Of course. Note this comment on
the wording in Matthew 24:33,36: "One
saying of the Saviour must not be made
to destroy another. Though no man
knoweth the day nor the hour of His
coming, we are instructed and required
to know when it is near" 10 (emphasis is
part of the quote) .For this writer, Ellen
White, the coming was near because by
her day the time prophecies leading to
the time of the End had been fulfilled.
 Seventh-day Adventist students of
Daniel and Revelation know that while
the "last days" truly began in New Tes
tament times, the time of the End is a
much more recent phenomenon.'' With
the passing of the great time prophe
cies of Daniel and Revelation, we now
live in the time of the End. So these are
not just ordinary times. The year 2000
is much closer to the End than the year
1000 was. From the Bible's prophetic
outlook we know that since 1798 and
1844 this world's history is writing its
final chapter. Though we cannot know
with certainty that this is the final gen
eration we certainly know that things
can wind up very soon.
Though current events should not
be used to encourage date setting, we are
certainly living in times like those the
Bible associates with the End. Knowledge
is increasing with breathtaking rapidity
(Dan. 12:4). The Internet and satellite
broadcasting make it possible for the
whole world to hear the gospel quickly
(Matt. 24:14). Unprecedentedly far-
reaching divisions among nations are
rife; weapons of mass destruction, not
heard of just a few years ago, are in in
creasingly unstable hands. Rebellion,
profanity, perversions, and violence seem
to have an omnipresence and potency
unparalleled in human history (2 Tim.
3:1-5).
The "signs" are here indeed.
The question for us is, How do we
accurately, and responsibly, interpret
them?
1 An excellent summary of the early
Jewish perspective on signs can be found in
D. S. Russell, The Method and Menage o^Jew
ish Apocalyptic (Philadelphia: Westminster
Press, 1964), 271-276. The Jewish under
standing of signs, which the disciples of Jesus
would have shared, was based on the Day of
Yahweh passages in the Old Testament. It
was felt that the near approach of the End
would be marked by wars, wickedness,
earthquakes, famines, and heavenly por
tents, among other things. Jesus is not
inventing the concept of signs, He is mod
erating their impact on the disciples.
2 Jesus does seem to give a measurable
sign of the nearness of the End in Matthew
24:14. The End will come when the gospel
has been preached to the whole world. Yes,
the gospel must be preached to the world
before the Lord comes, but it is not the kind
of sign you can base a calculation on. After
all, Paul had the impression that this sign
had been fulfilled already in his day (Col.
1:23). The only sign that meets the disciples'
intention is the " 'sign of the Son of man' "
in Matthew 24:30. But this appears to be the
literal glory that surrounds Jesus Himself at
His coming. Those who wait for this sign
will be too late.
Jesus' response to His disciples is dis
appointing to me in a way. It would seem
easier for us if He would have given us all
the details about the End, and the events
leading up to it; then we could line them all
up, see exactly where we are, and know when
we have to get ready. But apparently that
wasn't Jesus' purpose. Apparently that
wouldn't have been the best thing for us.
What then was His purpose in this chapter?
He gives us that in Matthew 24:42." 'There
fore keep watch, because you do not know
on what day your Lord will come' " (empha
sis mine).
3 See the accounts in Flavius Josephus,
The Wars of the Jews.
4 On ancient earthquakes see A.
Hermann, "Erdbeben," in Reallexikon fuer
Antike und Christentum, edited by Theodor
Klauser, vol. 5 (Stuttgart: Anton Heirse-
mann, 1962), 1070-1113.Note especially the
list of first-century earthquakes on page
1104. It is reported that the quake in Jerusa
lem damaged the newly finished temple, just
before the Roman sieges began in A.D. 66:
G. A. Turner, "Earthquake," The Interna
tional Standard Bible Encyclopedia, revised
edition, edited by Geoffrey Bromiley (Grand
Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1982), 2:4, 5.
gniting
1 ass ion
for living
God's
love...
never losing
fOCUS of
the cross.
12501 Old Columbia Pike Silver Spring MD 20904
301.680.6427 301.680.6464 fax jenniferwoody@yahoo.com
5 See the account that Ellen White
drew from Josephus in The Great Contro
versy, 1911 ed. (Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press
Pub. Assn., 1950), 29.
6 Note evidence for heretical move
ments within the church of the first century
in 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians,
Colossians, 2 Peter, 1 and 2 John, Jude, and
Revelation 2, 3 (note 2:20 especially).
7 A careful examination of this text, of
course, would include it among those men
tioned earlier that indicate the "last days"
as a present reality in New Testament times.
Paul instructs his readers to "have nothing
to do" with people already acting in this way.
The "sign" of apostasy and social unrest has
been with us from the beginning of the
Christian era.
8 For an analysis of current events in
the light of the New Testament picture of
the end time see Jon Paulien, The Millen
nium Bug, (Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press
Pub. Assn., 1999), 9-43 and What the Bible
Says About the End-Time (Hagerstown, Md.:
Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1994), 139-
159. Samuele Bacchiocchi is offering an
ongoing analysis of end-time signs at the fol
lowing listserv: sbacchiocchi@qtm.net.
9 Roy Adams, "The Final Days Nor
malcy," Adventist Review, April 21, 1994, 4.
10 The Great Controversy, 371.
11 Seventh-day Adventists understand
the time of the End to have begun at the time
of the relatively-recent events surrounding
the French Revolution. For a scholarly study
of the distinction between the last days and
the time of the End, see Gerhard Pfandl, The
Time of the End in the Book of Daniel
(Berrien Springs, Mich: Adventist Theologi
cal Society Publications, 1992).
NISTRIES
NORTH AMERICAN DIVISION
of SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS
Ministry/June-July 2000 21
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hen addressing a group of ministers, Fred Craddock used a metaphor to
illustrate what is essential for Christian living.
John S. Nixon is senior We tend to think, Craddock said,
pastor of the Oakwood that giving our all to Jesus is like taking
College Church in a thousand dollar bill and laying it on
Huntsville, Alabama the table. "Here's my life Lord, I give it
and associate director all to you." The reality of Christian life,
III of the North American he said, is not that way. Instead, God
Division Ministerial sends us to the bank in order to cash in
Association. the thousand dollar bill for rolls and
rolls of quarters and we go through life
putting out fifty cents here and twenty-
five cents there. Living the life of faith
is not always glorious or dramatic; it is
mostly mundane. It is done day by day,
in little acts of love, twenty-five cents at
a time. It is one thing to go out in a blaze
of glory for God; it is a much harder
thing to be faithful day in and day out,
enduring to the end.
Craddock's illustration presents a
challenge for believers in the Advent. To
hold on to the promise of the Second
Coming is a test of faith's endurance. If
every generation of believers since the
Ascension has expected Christ to return
in their time, why hasn't He? What do
we do with the urgency inherent in the
Advent message? How are we to live joy
fully and expectantly in the face of
apparent delay?
The tension
The Second Coming prophecy as
found in Matthew 24 incorporates three
24 Ministry/June-July 2000
n
end-of-the-world scenarios the flood
of Noah (the end of the antediluvian
world), the destruction of Jerusalem
(the end of Israel as the chosen nation),
and the Parousia (the end of Satan and
the reign of sin). The fulfillment of the
first two prophecies serve as a guaran
tee of the fulfillment of the third.
But as Jesus masterfully weaves the
three prophecies into one, two conflict
ing principles of eschatology emerge,
creating a tension between that cannot
be fully resolved. Though our inclination
is to try and resolve the tension the
contradictory things inherent in the
prophecy must remain. Believers are
called, not to rationalize the prophecy of
the Parousia, but to live, by faith, even
with the tension found within it.
The first of the two conflicting prin
ciples is certainty. Jesus said, " 'Now learn
this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as
its twigs get tender and its leaves come
out, you know that summer is near. Even
so, when you see all these things, you
know that it is near, right at the door'"
(Matt. 24:32,33, NIV). The fig tree points
to an occurrence in the natural order,
used as a sign of the certainty of our
Lord's return. It is a potent symbol.
The fig tree was one of the most
common trees in Palestine. Jesus and the
disciples may have been sitting under one
as He spoke these words. When the
branches of the tree become soft with sap
and begin to bud, summer is fast ap
proaching. The natural order confirms
the promise of something to come. By
pointing to the fig tree Jesus meets us at
our level, the level of facts that anyone
can verify. When we witness the changes
in the fig tree, we know certainly that they
portend a specific change in the season.
As surely as summer follows the signals
observed in the fig tree, the second com
ing of Jesus follows the phenomena He
identifies in Matthew 24.
But as Christ draws the analogy, He
does not make nature equal with the
Word of God. The fig tree is only a sign
of the validity of the promise. The prom
ise is staked on something greater than
something created. It is staked on what
caused creation to be. The sun rises in
the East and sets in the West; grass is
mowed down and grows back again; riv
ers flow; clouds give rain; salmon swim
upstream; and, " 'As long as the earth
endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and
heat, summer and winter, day and night
will never cease'" (Gen. 8:22). But more
sure than all these put together, is the
invincible word of God, the word that
called it all into being. The God who can
not lie has spoken, and He has said, Jesus
is coming again.
The reason the promise cannot fail
is not because we believe it. The promise
is sure because God is God and He can
not deny Himself. (2 Tim. 2:13). The
Bible's first word is "in the beginning
God" and in Matthew 24 we are assured,
"in the end God!" The world did not
come about by accident and it will not
end by accident either. We have certainty
because the promise is staked on God.
But there is also an opposing reality
clearly expressed in the prophecy." 'No
one knows about that day or hour, not
even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,
but only the Father"' (Matt. 24:36).
This element completes the teach
ing and reveals the inherent tension.
There is a paradox of certainty and un
certainty. Jesus promises a sure return,
but its time is undisclosed. The believer
knows what, not when. And it is clear
that this element of uncertainty is the
26 Ministry/June-July 2000
design of God, intended to create a par
ticular response in the servant of God:
" 'Therefore keep watch, because you do
not know on what day your Lord will
come ... So you also must be ready,
because the Son of Man will come at an
hour when you do not expect him' "
(Matt. 24:42,44).
The paradox of the promise creates
a unique posture for the church. The
what is certain, the when obscure. And
just as the certainty stands up against
' alvation
history reveals, as a constant,
that believers are
commanded to live with the
peril of not knowing. In key
areas of our relationship with
God, we are called to walk by
faith without sight.
our doubts, so the uncertainty resists
our investigations. The time of the
Lord's return is not just undeter
mined it is indeterminable.
The peril of not knowing
Salvation history reveals, as a con
stant, that believers are commanded to
live with the peril of not knowing. In
key areas of our relationship with God,
we are called to walk by faith without
sight. We don't need to believe in what
we see. Some things we have to accept
without full understanding.
When God called Abram to leave
everything he was sure of and follow
Him, it was a clear command, but it was
given in the mists of not knowing and
in the hazes of ambiguity. Abram did
not know where he was going and God
did not tell him. The land he had been
promised was still not his on the day
Abraham died. He lived in tents
throughout his life and experience with
God. The only land he ever owned in
his lifetime he had to pay for, the field
bought from the Hittites for a family
burial ground (Gen. 25:9,10).
Job never did get an explanation for
his afflictions or an answer to some of
his deepest questions. When God finally
responded to His servant, He was the
One asking the questions " 'Brace
yourself like a man; I will question you,
and you shall answer me'" (Job 38:3).
And the servant of God remembered his
proper place, " 'I am unworthy how
can I reply to you? I put my hand over
my mouth'" (40:4).
The Hebrew boys did not know
whether God would intervene to save
them from the Babylonian furnace. Their
duty to God was clear enough, but how
much it would cost them was hidden.
All these demonstrated a steadfast
faith in God without full knowledge of
many crucial facts. Yet their ignorance
did not inhibit their faith; on the con
trary, it enhanced their faith. And their
testimony showed the heroic nature of
their confidence in God." 'But even if he
does not [save us]," they said, "we want
you to know, O king, that we will not
serve your gods'" (Dan. 3:18)." 'Though
He slay me, yet will I trust in Him'" (Job
13:15). "And he went out, not knowing
where he was going" (Heb. 11:8, NASB).
Certainty and uncertainty are part
and parcel of Christian living, and of
the Second Coming promise in particu
lar. If either of these elements is omitted
from the prophecy, the force of Christ's
teaching is lost. The truth of a promise
fosters hope, the uncertainty of the time
of its fulfillment is a summons to watch
fulness, endurance, and faith.
The believer therefore lives in a state
of expectancy, anticipating an event that
must come at some time, and may arrive
at any time. The tension between the
knowing and the not knowing, the cer
tainty and the uncertainty, keeps us at
our spiritual peak. It is the life of faith
that calls for constant listening, a life that
is dynamic, not static.
The daily walk
Here is where the necessity of rela
tional Christianity is emphasized. Jesus
Christ is not a creed, He is a living Per
son. The only way to know Him is to be
in fellowship with Him day in and day
out, moment to moment. We cannot
learn a few doctrines, and then put our
trust in those doctrines. The only way
to know what God is going to do next
is to be walking with God so that when
He speaks we will hear Him and when
He moves we will know it.
We must not be surprised at the
challenge of our faith. If our convictions
are true, we expect them to be challenged.
It is deep within the nature of the walk
of faith for that faith to be tested and thus
to grow and prove itself.
The coming of scoffers does noth
ing, nor can it do anything to weaken the
force of the promise of God itself. On the
contrary, their coming serves only to
strengthen the promise, since the proph
ecy predicts their coming. "In the last
days scoffers will come, scoffing and fol
lowing their own evil desires. They will
say, 'Where is this "coming" he promised?
Ever since our fathers died, everything
goes on as it has since the beginning of
creation'"(2 Peter 3:3,4).
The evil of the scoffers is in ratio
nalizing the promise. By making their
logic the measure of the validity of
God's Word, they fall into a snare. They
have not the humility to remember that
empirical knowing is only one way of
knowing and that all truths, especially
the most profound and far-reaching,
simply cannot be demonstrated in the
way they expect them to be. Then, seek
ing to justify their skepticism, they
exaggerate the facts:" 'Everything goes
on as it has,'" they say. Peter casts doubt
on the sincerity of their motives when
he says, "they deliberately forget . . ."
(verse 5, emphasis mine).
The promise of Christ's return is
based on faith in the Word and prom
ise of God. By its nature it cannot be
merely a matter of rationality. It is cer
tainly not irrational to believe it, but this
is clear only to those who believe the
word of promise.
Jesus is coming soon. There is an
urgency to the message that is not deter
mined by our clocks and calendars. We
cannot judge the infinite God by the dic
tates of finite time "With the Lord a day
esus is coming
soon. There is an urgency to
the message that is not
determined by our clocks and
calendars. We cannot judge the
infinite God by the dictates
offinite time.
is like a thousand years, and a thousand
years are like a day" (2 Peter 3:8).
The promise calls us to accept it on
the basis of the trustworthiness of the
word of the One who gave it, and with it,
accept that God leads in many paths that
are, along with many other things, ob
scure to us. But the paths are not obscure
to God and because our ultimate trust is
in Him, we await joyfully the fulfilling of
His word in the fullness of time.
Look at God's track record. Though,
when it comes to the fulfillment of His
promises, there always seems to be a tar
rying, the One who is Sovereign and
Omnipotent always has fulfilled the sure
word of His promise. Again, the promise
is absolutely sure, it is the time of fulfill
ment that is beyond our knowing, until
the time of realization.
Conclusion
When I was a boy we used to ride
the subway to church every weekend.
There were five of us who traveled with
our father in the New York City under
ground. I will never forget the day he
left us on the train. We had stopped at
the station where we transferred from
one train to another. As the doors of the
"A" train opened, Dad ran across the
platform leaving all of us behind. He
had never before done such a thing.
As we raced behind him in near
panic, we soon saw the meaning of his
apparent abandonment. The "GG"
train was about to leave the station
without us, the conductor pressing fe
verishly on his lever. But there was Dad,
standing in the only gap holding open
the doors for us to follow. And so we
safely boarded, one and all, under the
wings of our father's outstretched arms.
In the same way, Jesus has left us
behind to prepare a place where we can
be together forever. And though we are
not alone because of the abiding pres
ence of the Comforter, we long to see our
Savior in person and look into His face.
But God requires that in faith we run af
ter Him, following Him where we cannot
see, and believing in Him in situations
we cannot explain or fully understand.
When Dad bolted through the sub
way doors, we didn't know what he was
doing, but we knew enough to follow
him. And Dad knew we would follow. For
children there is no other choice. With
Christians it is the same. We may not
know why Jesus has not returned already
or when He will return, but we do know
Jesus. We may be confused sometimes.
The ways of Jesus may be mysterious to
us, but His character is no mystery. We
know Him to be a faithful and depend
able Master, One who loves us, is true and
unchanging. He will keep His promise to
us to come again. Ours is to be watchful,
faithful, and ready, never doubting that
He will do just as He has said.
Ministry/June-July 2000 27

n
schatology sells! Translated into more than fifty languages, Hal Lindsey s Late
J Great Planet Earth (1970) sold over 35,000,000 copies.
George R. Knight, Part of Lindsey's appeal was his
Ph.D., is professor of emphasis on the nearness of the Second
church history at the Advent. Readers were excited when he
Seventh-day Adventist predicted that the Secret Rapture would
Theological Seminary, happen in 1981, followed by the seven-
Andrews University, year tribulation and the visible return
Berrien Springs, of Christ in 1988.
Michigan. How did the author of the best-
selling nonfiction book of the 1970s
arrive at such specific information? His
key text was Matthew 24:34: "This gen
eration shall not pass, till all these things
be fulfilled." Defining a biblical genera
tion to be 40 years, Lindsey concluded
that all these things would take place
within 40 years after the founding of
modern Israel in 1948.'
Edgar Whisenant, picking up on a
portion of Lindsey's fame, provided his
readers with 88 Reasons Why the Rap
ture Will Be in 1988 (between September
11-13 according to his calculations).
While Whisenant's tract sold only a mea
sly 2,000,000 copies, it did have a
profound impact on many believers. Paul
and Jan Crouch's "Praise the Lord" TV
GEORGE
m Tl
\
111 J
program, for example, ran prerecorded
broadcasts on the Rapture during those
fated days of September 11-13 rather
than produce the program live for those
dates. The message was aimed, of course,
at those "left behind."2
Track 1: Eschatological excitement
Seventh-day Adventists have not
lagged behind other evangelicals in yield
ing to the temptation to engender
untoward eschatological excitement and
date setting. In fact, two of the three
founders of the movement were date-
setters. The influential Joseph Bates
sparked time-setting excitement in 1850
by interpreting "the seven spots of blood
on the Golden Altar and before the Mercy
seat" as representing "the duration of the
judicial proceedings on the living saints
in the Most Holy." Because each spot
supposedly stood for a year, Christ's
heavenly ministration would last seven
years. He would return in the clouds of
heaven in October 1851 seven years
after the Millerite disappointment.3
R. KNIGHT
Ministry/June-July 2000 29
 The early James White, for a time
also held to an Adventism that "nour
ished" itself primarily on eschatological
excitement and date setting. In Septem
ber 1845, for instance, he firmly believed
that Jesus would return in October
1845. At that point in his experience he
argued that an Adventist couple who
had announced their marriage had "de
nied their faith" in the Second Advent.
Marriage was "a wile of the Devil. The
firm brethren in Maine who are wait
ing for Christ to come have no
fellowship with such a move." That
view, he later claimed, was held by
"most of our brethren," since "such a
step seemed to contemplate years of life
in this world."4
Although Bates and White later
moderated their date-setting tendencies,
that spirit would continue in Adventism,
as seen in the 1893 General Conference
session. At that session A. T. Jones and
W. W. Prescott whipped the delegates
into a fever of excitement, claiming that
the end was imminent and that the con
ference would not close without an
outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
The denomination, Prescott ar
gued, had failed in not fully accepting
Christ's righteousness at the pivotal
1888 General Conference session. Us
ing Christ's illustration of the unfruitful
tree, he pointed out that Jesus did not
cut it down at the end of three years. In
mercy, He gave it a fourth year. It had
been four years since the 1888 session.
The time of decision had arrived.5
Never in the history of post Miller-
ite Adventism had there been such an air
of expectancy, such an eschatological ex
citement, as at that session. The basic
foundations of that excitement rested on
three elements:
(1) agitation regarding Sunday leg
islation that the Adventists interpreted in
the light of Revelation 12:17-14:12,6
(2) certain statements from Ellen
White regarding the beginning of the
Loud Cry and "the time of peril" being
upon the church,7 and
(3) the full acceptance by Jones and
Prescott of the prophetic ministry of
Anna Rice. While the first two of those
items deserved serious consideration and
30 Ministry/June-July 2000
an adequate interpretation, the third was
problematic through and through.
What would have happened if Jones
had been allowed to use all the powerful
"spiritual gifts" at his fingertips during
the 1893 meetings? A few weeks earlier
he had approved of Anna Rice as a
prophet. In the midst of the General
Conference Session, he had received a
testimony from her that he desperately
wanted to present to the assembled del
egates. The General Conference presi
dent, however, had forbidden him to read
it publicly. Jones, therefore, could only
. Ithough
Bates and White later
moderated their date-setting
tendencies, that spirit would
continue in Adventism.
hint that great things were coming.
"Thank the Lord," he told the delegates,
"he is not going to be content much
longer with one prophet! He will have
more. He has done a wonderful work
with one. And having done such a great
work with one, what in the world will he
do when he gets a lot of them."8 It must
have grated upon Jones's impulsive na
ture to be restricted from using his most
powerful tool to bring about the latter
rain.
What about the 1893 experience?
While some claim that the failure to ac
cept Jones's excitement was one of the
central failures of Adventism,9 what the
denomination actually missed out on
were the charismatic excesses that
would eventually surface in the Anna
Rice crisis of early 1894, brought on
through Jones and Prescott's leadership.
Those errant leaders had proved anew
that it is always possible to stir up people
to extremes by the manipulation of data
related to the second advent of Jesus.
That tendency is far from dead.
Twentieth-century Adventism has seen
quite a multitude of contenders stirring
up dubious excitement based on false
interpretations of end-time prophecy.
Some, for example, generated enthusi
asm for the Second Coming in 1944 on
the centennial of the Millerite disap
pointment. Others saw the date as 1964.
After all, didn't the Bible say that the
last days will be like the days of Noah.
And didn't Noah preach for 120 years
before the Flood arrived?
The last years of the twentieth cen
tury witnessed the circulation of theories
related to the year 2000 and the begin
ning of the seventh millennium as the
great heavenly sabbath. One of the most
successful excitement generators of the
1990s was a book "demonstrating," on
the basis of six completed millennia, that
the Second Advent was just a few "pro
phetic seconds" away. Though rejected
by an official church reading committee
because of seriously problematic inter
pretations, the book was still printed and
distributed by a major Adventist publish
ing house. Of course, it was a best seller.
Its success in the Adventist market was not
in spite of its problems but because of
them. Many Adventists, in line with
dispensationalists such as Hal Lindsey,
still base their religious enthusiasm on
excitement rather than solid biblical data.
The moral of the story should be
clear by now. It is relatively easy to stir
Adventists up eschatologically. Sensa
tionalism is the "stuff" of such an
achievement.
Track 2: Responsible living in the
interim
The third founder of Adventism
stood over against the early Joseph Bates
and James White on the issue of date
setting and placing an overemphasis on
eschatological excitement. In 1851, for
example, Ellen White rose to combat
Bates's teaching that Christ would come
that October.
"Dear Brethren," she penned, "the
Lord has shown me that the message of
the third angel [of Revelation 14:9-12]
must go, and be proclaimed to the scat
tered children of the Lord, and that it
should not be hung on time; for time
never will be a test again. I saw that some
were getting a false excitement arising
from preaching time.... I saw that this
message can stand on its own founda
tion, and that it needs not time to
strengthen it....
"I saw that some were making ev
ery thing bend to the time of this next
fall that is, making their calculations
in reference to that time. I saw that this
was wrong, for this reason: Instead of
going to God daily to know their
PRESENT duty, they look ahead, and
make their calculations as though they
knew the work would end this fall, with
out inquiring their duty of God daily." 10
That was not the first time that Ellen
White wrote against time setting. From
as early as 1845 she had repeatedly
warned that time was no longer a test and
that every passing of a set date would
weaken the faith of those who had put
their hope in it. Her reward for taking
such a position was to be accused of "be
ing with the evil servant that said in his
heart, 'My Lord delayeth His coming.'""
It needs to be emphasized in Ellen
White's 1851 statement cited above that
she not only argued against the "false
excitement" generated by date setting, but
that she twice emphasized the present
duty of believers over against excitement.
Beyond that, she stressed that the preach
ing of the third angel's message of
Revelation 14 implied a process rather
than a point of time. Even her first vi
sion in December 1844 hinted that the
heavenly city might be a "great way off."12
Ellen White moved not only Bates
away from his date setting excitement
and toward a more responsible minis
try as he awaited the Second Advent, but
she did the same for James White. After
all, the anti-marriage young preacher of
1845 married her on August 30, 1846!
The reason for his transformation helps
one understand the ongoing tension
between eschatological excitement and
present duty. As the Whites saw it, "God
had a work for both of us to do, and he
saw that we could greatly assist each
other in that work." 13
Thus between October 1845 and
August 1846 the ground had shifted in
the thinking of James and Ellen White.
They had perceptively moved away from
the immediacy perspective of the date
setters to fully grasp the occupy-till-He-
comes horn of the Adventist tension.
Their marriage is an impressive symbol
of that ground shift. They had a work to
do. As a result, they took the first step
toward the institutionalization of Ad-
ventism. If the end was not to come as
soon as they first expected, they needed
to take adequate steps to prepare them
selves for service in the interim.
But they had not given up their Ad
vent faith. Marriage for the Whites
became a necessary means for the fur
therance of the Advent message. On the
other hand, their marriage also pointed
to their acceptance of the continuity of
time.
As it turned out, marriage was only
the first step in the Whites' task of plac
ing Adventism on a more permanent
footing. Repeatedly they led out in cre
ating stability in Adventist ranks so that
the sounding of the third angel's mes
sage would be supported by an adequate
institutional base. Yet at every step they
had to combat those fixated on the im
mediacy pole of the Advent hope.
resource for ministry spouses
J)eootioaals
^Kefeoani articles specifically gearedVo cfergy spouses
Sharing 6fessinys and'testimonials
(Sjorloiside nesis of eoe/iis <zao sciioities
focafconference office /a inquire
about a conference-sponsored subscription.
One example of this has to do with
the establishment of Adventist schools.
The immediacy wing of the church ar
gued that such a move showed a lack of
faith in the nearness of the Advent, be
cause schooling implied that children
would have time to grow up and use their
education. James White replied that "a
well-disciplined and informed mind can
best receive and cherish the sublime
truths of the Second Advent." His wife
agreed. "Because time is short," she
penned in her first publication on edu
cation, "we should work with diligence
and double energy." 14 In their response
to responsibly occupying the time until
the eschaton, the Whites continued to
maintain a sense of immediacy. With
each step in the institutional develop
ment of Seventh-day Adventism they
sought to put the denomination on a
firmer base so that it could preach the
nearness of this world to come.
Living in the tension between
excitement and responsibility
Under the leadership of James and
Ellen White the denomination devel
oped a full array of denominational
institutions aimed at engendering re
sponsible action that would be carried
forward until the Second Advent. Yet
there is a sense in which failure was built
into the very success of their actions. In
Ministry/June-July 2000 31
short, in order to preserve the message
of the imminent coming, institutions
based on continuity and semi-perma
nence had to be erected. But in that very
process subtle and not-so-subtle trans
formations took place. As Michael
Pearson puts it, "the survival of 'the
remnant' has been ensured by the
mechanism of institutionalization, but
that which has survived appears to some
to bear little resemblance to the origi
nal." Or, as American social historian
Edwin Gaustad noted, "While expect
ing a kingdom of God from the heavens,
[the Seventh-day Adventists] work dili
gently for one on the earth." 15
Perhaps the temptation to move
away from the immediacy wing of the
Advent tension and toward the occupy-
till-I-come end of the spectrum is best
illustrated by John Harvey Kellogg, the
developer of the influential Battle Creek
Sanitarium and Adventism's premier
"kingdom builder" at the beginning of
the twentieth century. In order to get the
funding and recognition that he needed,
Kellogg progressively shifted from the
immediacy emphasis of Adventism,
eventually finding that emphasis both a
bother and an embarrassment. 16 The
same temptation continues to be an ever-
present possibility, especially for those
Adventists whose focal point is social
outreach.
Yet those Adventists who argue that
social outreach is important to Advent-
ism are not wrong. 17 They are quite in
harmony with the conclusion of Christ's
great eschatological sermon of Matthew
24 and 25. Whereas 24:1-41 encouraged
Christ's followers toward the expect
ancy end of the eschatological tension,
24:42-25:46 directed them to the wait
ing and occupying aspect of the tension.
Matthew 24:48,25:5 and 25:19 specifi
cally indicate that it would be a "long
time" before the return. At the same
time the entire passage provides five
parables on how Christians should live
during the interim between the Ascen
sion and the Second Advent. Whereas
the first three parables in the sequence
place the emphasis on watching (24:42-
25:13), and the fourth (the talents)
emphasizes working while watching
32 Ministry/June-July 2000
(25:14-30), the final one (the sheep and
the goats, 25:31-46) emphasizes the so
cial concern and the nature of the
working that will be found in Christ's
followers as they await His return. Thus
the "Adventist" tension is built into the
very structure of the Olivet Discourse. 18
The temptation for Adventists in
the future will be the same as for those
in the past; that is, to gravitate toward
either the immediacy end of the spec
trum or the occupying end. That reality
has continued to cause problems in the
denomination. While those at one pole
. . n their
response to responsibly
occupying the time until the
eschaton, the Whites continued
to maintain a sense of
immediacy.
of the tension get so concerned with
their social involvement that they are
tempted to spiritualize their interpre
tation of the Second Advent and at
times sound almost postmillennial,
those at the other pole have a "faith"
that is nurtured upon periodic excite
ment but largely fails in the daily task
of living "Christianly" in the interim.
The ideal, of course, is to live re
sponsibly in the interim. John Wesley was
once asked how he would spend the day
if he knew it was his last. He replied that
he would just go through with the pro
gram of preaching, visiting, and caring
that he already had on his agenda for the
day. In the long run, though this notion
might not sell as many books as does Hal
Lindsey, it is the only way for Christians
to live as they await the Advent.
1 Robert G. Clouse, Robert N. Hosack, and
Richard V. Pierard, The New Millennium Manual:
A Once and Future Guide (Grand Rapids, Mich.:
Baker Book House, 1999), 127,128.
2 Ibid., 125.
3 Joseph Bates, An Explanation of the Typi
cal and Anti-typical Sanctuary, by the Scriptures
(New Bedford, Mass.: Benjamin Lindsey, 1850),
10,11.
4 James White, "Watchman, What of the
Night?" The Day-Star, Sept. 20,1845,25,26; idem,
"Letter to Bro. Jacobs," The Day-Star, Oct. 11,
1845, 47; [James White and Ellen G. White], Life
Sketches: Ancestry, Early Life, Christian Experience
and Extensive Labors, of Elder James White, and
His Wife, Mrs. Ellen G. White (Battle Creek, Mich.:
Seventh-day Adventist Pub. Assn., 1888), 126.
5 W. W. Prescott, General Conference Daily
Bulletin, 1893,105; cf. 39, 65, 384, 386, 504).
6 For more on the contemporary Sunday
law crisis, see George R. Knight, From 1888 to
Apostasy: The Case of A. T. Jones (Washington,
D.C.: Review and Herald, 1987), 75-88.
7 Ellen G. White, "The Perils and Privileges
of the Last Days," Review and Herald, Nov. 22,
1892. 722; Ellen G. White to William Ings, Jan. 9,
1893.
s S.N.HaskelltoE.G.White,Jan.4,189[3];
A. C. Rice to A. T. Jones, Feb. 21, 1893; C.
McReynolds to L. T. Nicola, Mar. 22, 1894; A. T.
Jones, General Conference Daily Bulletin, 1893,
153. For a fuller discussion of the Anna Rice crisis
see Knight, From 1888 to Apostasy, 89-116; idem,
A User-Friendly Guide to the 1888 Message
(Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald, 1998),
125-132.
9 Robert J. Wieland, "Letters," Ministry,
June 1988, 2; Robert J. Wieland and Donald K.
Short, 1888 Re-examined, rev. ed. (n.p.: 1888 Mes
sage Study Committee, 1987), 91.
10 Ellen G. White, "Dear Brethren" Review
and Herald Extra, July 21, 1851, [4]; italics sup
plied.
11 Ellen G. White, Early Writings (Hagers
town, Md.: Review and Herald, 1945), 22.
12 Ibid., 14,15.
13 [J. White and E. G. White], Life Sketches
(1888 ed.), 126, 238.
14 W. H. Ball and James White, "Questions
and Answers," Review and Herald, Dec. 23,1862,
29; Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church
(Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1948),
vol. 3,159.
15 Michael Pearson, Millennial Dreams and
Moral Dilemmas: Seventh-day Adventism and Con
temporary Ethics (Cambridge: Cambridge Univer
sity Press, 1990), 26; Edwin Scott Gaustad,
Historical Atlas of Religion in America (New York:
Harper & Row, 1962), 115.
16 For more on Kellogg's approach, see Ri
chard W. Schwarz, John Harvey Kellogg, M.D.
(Nashville, Tenn.: Southern Publishing Assn.,
1970); George R. Knight, The Fat Lady and the
Kingdom: Adventist Mission Confronts the Chal
lenges of Institutionalism and Secularization
(Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1995),
152-163.
17 See, for example, Zdravko Plantak, The Si
lent Church: Human Rights and Adventist Social
Ethics (London: Macmillan and New York: St.
Martin's Press, 1998).
15 For a fuller discussion on the tension in
Matthew 24 and 25, see George R. Knight, Mat
thew: The Gospel of the Kingdom (Nampa, Idaho:
Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1994), 234-250.
 To do something, call
1-800-424-ADRA (2372) i 1-888-274-2372 (in Canada)
or log on to www.adra.org

Achenlist Deu'lopmen! and Relief Agenq Internalional

 nr ri
\
j L
1 ^
m
ow often I've heard this sentiment expressed: "I hope Jesus doesn't come
.during my lifetime. I'd never make it through the time of trouble!"
Calvin Thomsen, Considering the various presenta
D.Min, is senior pastor tions regarding "the time of trouble"
of the Azure Hills that precedes Jesus' second coming, it's
Seventh-day Adventist no surprise that many people dread
Church, Azure Hills, Christ's return. In fact, I vividly remem
California. ber the potent impact that teachings
about the time of trouble had on me as
a child. After the lights were out and my
brother and I were supposed to be
asleep, we tried to outdo each other with
tales of beastly torment such as high-
tech torture machines, creative uses of
acetylene torches, and pliers that could
pluck one's fingernails one by one.
Those childish imaginings were
frightening enough. But in some ways it
can be even harder on an adult. After all,
I now have much more to lose: a house,
equity, retirement savings, a wife, two
CALVIN
34 Ministry/June-July 2000
rT n
\
j
to be alive
children. I find it hard to look forward
to hiding in caves or getting my check
book and ATM card shredded because I
won't worship the beast. I know that the
Bible compares last day upheavals to la
bor pains. But, given a choice, I think I'd
rather opt for some sort of cosmic epi-
dural birth without pangs.
The time of trouble in the Bible
The specific phrase, "the time of
trouble," occurs only in Daniel, who
predicts "a time of trouble, such as
never has been since there was a nation
till that time" (Dan. 12:1). Matthew 24,
(with parallels in Luke 21 and Mark 13)
refers to wars, earthquakes, famines, up
heavals in nature, and other such crises
accompanying the time of the end. Jesus
THOMSEN
tells the disciples that they will be de
livered up to tribulation, hated and even
killed for His sake (verse 9). He also
speaks of a " 'desolating sacrilege' "
(verse 15), an entity Bible commenta
tors see as a persecuting antichrist. In
language that parallels Daniel 12,
Christ foretells " 'great tribula
tion, such as has not been
from the beginning of the
world until now'" (verse
21). These troubles are
referred to as "birth-
pangs" (verse 8).
Some of the most
vivid depictions of
earth's final afflic
tions appear in John's
apocalypse: graphic
imagery of persecu
tions, of a fierce beast
power who plots the
death of those refusing
to worship him, of bowl
after bowl of divine wrath,
and of bloody strife that
will precede the great day of
the Lord. As trumpets sound,
winds are unleashed, plagues com
mence, the powers of evil marshal
against the righteous and the cry goes up,
"How long O Lord?"
Other Bible writers also refer to
great trauma before the final restoration
of all things. Jeremiah, like Matthew, uses
the language of childbirth to describe the
anguish of God's people before the final
reconciliation. After describing a man in
agonized labor Jeremiah exclaims, "How
awful that day will be! None will be like
it. It will be a time of trouble for Jacob,
but he will be saved out of it."(Jer. 30:7,
NIV) While the immediate context is of
return from Babylonian exile, many Bible
scholars see a wider reference to the
struggle before the great gathering of the
Messianic age and also the time of
trouble that just precedes the second
coming of Jesus.
Scriptural teachings about the time
of trouble or tribulation follow a larger
biblical pattern that emerges through
out the portrayals of salvation history.
The birth of a new or renewed order is
always preceded by a period of trauma
and chaos. This period of upheaval and
chaos can be seen as both a divine judg
ment on those who reject God and as
the liberation of God's faithful ones.
R,
'efore it is
all over everybody alive will
have made a decision about
whom they will worship.
Everybody is shouldered off
the fence by these
happenings. Multitudes offer
allegiance to the beast
creature while a remnant
worship the Creator God.
Though the multitudes reject God, a
faithful remnant who follow God at any
cost, are ultimately saved.
The Creation story provides a lan
guage and themes that unfold in such
chaos to cosmos transitions as the
stories of the Flood, the journey
of Abraham and the Exodus.
The final tribulation is
seen to follow these mo
tifs introduced earlier
in scripture. General
transitional motifs
include the dark
ness of a world in
rebellion, blowing
winds, drying up
of waters, decep
tive temptation,
pain of childbirth,
plagues and divine
judgment, the faith
fulness of a remnant
and the ultimate lib
eration of God's people,
and the birth of a new
heaven and earth. 1
Why such trouble?
This repeated cycle throughout sal
vation history raises a logical question.
Why not skip the trauma and go
straight to deliverance?
I can venture an answer only by not
ing the nature of the deception known
as sin. This cycle was set in motion by
one who is described as " 'a liar and the
father of lies' " (John 8:44). From the
beginning, the rotten core of sin has been
enshrouded in the seductive promise of
a glittering deception. Sin rebellion
against and autonomy from God is
presented as a fulfilling, life-enhancing
alternative. God is presented as a with
holding, untrustworthy being who can
hold His creatures in submission only by
death threats (Gen. 3:1-5) or bribery (Job
1:1-12).
Throughout human history God
has revealed Himself in response to the
lie. He dramatically parts the Red Sea
and leads Israel to safety. He establishes
covenants, thundering from Mount
Sinai, and sends water gushing from a
rock while manna appears on the
Ministry/June-July 2000 35
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ground. He speaks through a succession
of prophets. Then in His greatest act of
self-revelation, He sends His own Son.
Pierced hands outstretched on the cross
dramatically demonstrate the depth
and intensity of God's love and His de
sire to keep faith with His children. An
empty tomb certifies His power over
death and every human dilemma.
Seemingly, any of these demonstra
tions, especially the cross, would be
enough to puncture the illusion of
Satan's original lie. The existence of
God, the character of God, the love of
God and the true consequences of sin
these and more are etched out power
fully by God's working in history. But
strangely, the lessons are all too often
lost on the rebellious human race. True,
the dazzling power of the sin illusion
occasionally flickers and dims in the
face of some particularly disturbing evil.
But amnesia sets in quickly or people
even use such displays of sin at work as
evidence against God.
But there is something different
about this final, tempestuous series of
events. While earth's history has certainly
been punctuated with episodes of hor
ror, God has patiently blunted the full
impact of sin's destructive power. But
here finally at the end of the age, once
and for all, God must lift the restraint and
expose the true reality that is the dark
underside of the cosmic rebellion.
While this lifting of restraint is an
act of divine judgment and revelation,
like all manifestations of "the wrath of
God," there is a component of "letting
alone" (Rom. 1:18, 24, 26, 28) so that
the true principles of God's enemy and
the natural outworking of the sin prin
ciple are revealed. "Satan will then
plunge the inhabitants of the earth into
one great, final trouble. As the angels of
God cease to hold in check the fierce
winds of human passion, all the ele
ments of strife will be let loose."2
Before it is all over everybody alive
will have made a decision about whom
they will worship. Everybody is shoul
dered off the fence by these happenings.
Multitudes offer allegiance to the beast
creature while a remnant worship the
Creator God. As the world polarizes, a
stark clarity emerges. The seductive prin
ciples that have mesmerized most of the
world are revealed as horrific, destruc
tive lies. The trustworthiness of God is
vindicated. And the cycle ceases. The
fallen planet is ultimately restored. The
old order passes away, never to return.
The Time of Trouble A time of
hope and assurance
The outcome of this time may be
positive, but most still dread the
thought of going through it. I would like
to advance the revolutionary thought
that it may, in fact, be the greatest time
in history to be alive. And I say this not
T Mhis
his repeated
cycle throughout salvation
history raises a logical
question. Why not skip the
trauma and go straight to
deliverance?
simply clinging to the thought, true as
it is, of some future in which all that is
wrong will finally be made right. It isn't
just a matter, either, of taking heart in
assurances that bread and water will be
supplied (Isa. 33:16) or that the guard
ian angels will shield us from the
looming threats that could snuff us out
in an instant. The real glory of this time
lies in the paradoxical truth that God's
presence will become especially real
and, dare I say it, especially joyful to us
during these exacting days. Here are
some reasons why I think this way.
First, it's worth noting the surpris
ing and hopeful twist that pervades the
biblical passages that foretell last day
upheavals. In fact, none of them seem
particularly preoccupied with trouble.
Instead, the emphasis is on deliverance
and triumph. While Daniel predicts a
great time of trouble, in context the
trouble itself, as he describes it, looks
like a brief aside. Daniel's depictions
burst with affirmations of hope and
deliverance. The saints of the Most High
are pictured not as beaten down with
suffering but instead they are seen in
their joyous, liberated state as shining
"like the brightness of the firmament"
(Dan. 12:3).
Jesus foretells a variety of birth
pangs in the Olivet Discourse. But, He
interrupts His own description of wars
and world upheaval to say," 'see that you
are not alarmed'" (Matt. 24:6). He also
promises that" 'for the sake of the elect,
those days will be shortened'" (verse 22).
The most significant sign of His coming
is not trouble but the preaching of the
gospel to the whole world (verse 14). And
the comparison to the days of Noah
when people are caught up in pleasure
and prosperity suggest the general tone
of much of earth's closing history will be
that of deceptive prosperity, not merely
endless trouble.
Revelation, the book that presents
the most horrific imagery of earth's final
upheavals, bursts with songs of praise.
The most significant imagery is not of
beasts or plagues or bloodshed but of
singing saints and a triumphant Lamb.
Second, I think that God's prom
ises will come alive for us in a way most
of us haven't even begun to imagine. A
key passage exposing this theme is
found in Romans 8. In the face of tribu
lation, distress, and persecution we are
"more than conquerors through him
who loved us" (verse 37), and that there
is absolutely "nothing in all creation
that can separate us from the love of
God in Christ Jesus our Lord (verse 39,
NEB). We can take heart also in the as
surance of Jesus " 'In the world you
will have tribulation; but be of good
cheer, I have overcome the world' "
(John 16:32).
Some of the Psalms, originally vi
tal expressions of faith in the face of
experiences such as David's flight from
Saul, may become even more luminous
in the face of earth's final tribulations.
Ministry/June-July 2000 37
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Psalm 27:5, for example, affirms that
"he will hide me in his shelter in the day
of trouble." Assurance is also found in
Psalm 32 "You are my hiding place;
you will protect me from trouble and
surround me with songs of deliverance"
(verse 7,NIV).Psalm 59:16 (NIV) por
trays God as "my fortress, my refuge in
times of trouble." Psalm 138:7 (NIV)
expresses a similar thought: "Though I
walk in the midst of trouble, you pre
serve my life; you stretch out your hand
against the anger of my foes, with your
right hand you save me." Psalm 91 de
picts God as " 'my refuge and my
fortress'" (verse 2, NIV). The psalmist
promises that God "will cover you with
his feathers, and under his wings you
will find refuge" (verse 4, NIV).
Third, I believe that we will experi
ence, a unprecedented sense of purpose
and vitality during this time. Ask any
body to describe the moments of life
when they felt most alive and a clear pat
tern emerges. We talk about the times of
challenge, the times of adversity, the
times when we have been stretched to the
limit. Veterans gather to share their war
stories. Athletes tell of the harrowing ski
run or the agonizing race. Regardless of
the arena, the pattern is the same. We cel
ebrate the crucible, not the easy chair.
And when we aren't in the crucible
we seem to seek meaning by making
crises out of trivia. A thoughtless driver
who cuts us off, a bad hair day, a do
mestic tiff, a difference with somebody
at work, a dinnertime interruption by a
rude telemarketer, or a dead battery on
the car can seem life-dominating.
But the day comes when suddenly,
in the face of earth's final upheaval, the
host of annoyances recede into nothing
ness. Life comes into focus. Every other
issue is swallowed up by the big issue, the
one truly important issue the matter of
ultimate allegiance. Who is worthy of our
worship? Is Jesus truly Lord or not? Is He
Lord of our lives? As during this awful
time we experience His Lordship in new
and powerful ways, as the "latter rain"
of the Holy Spirit drenches us, and a host
of distractions fall away, I believe there
will be a life and vitality we have never
known before.
Fourth, we will experience pro
found personal transformation during
this time. Seventh-day Adventists have
referred to the final, personal struggle
of God's people before they are liber
ated as "the time of Jacob's trouble."
This is a reference to an inner struggle,
not with the beast and the external pow
ers of evil, but with and within
ourselves. The purpose of this time goes
beyond the unmasking of Babylonian
evil "out there" and confronts us with
the ways in which it has taken root in
side our own hearts.
. .. .ere finally at
the end of the age, once and for
all, God must lift the restraint
and expose the true reality
that is the dark underside of
the cosmic rebellion.
Jacob's night of struggle is a fitting
metaphor because in the heavy blackness
of night he suddenly feels the hand of a
stranger upon him. In fear and despera
tion he struggles to the point of absolute
exhaustion. For a hopeful moment, he
gets a new surge of energy. The stranger
cries for freedom before the rising sun.
The stranger touches his thigh. Jacob
collapses in excruciating pain. When, in
the light of dawn, he comes limping out
to meet Esau, he might give the appear
ance of having been diminished by his
night of struggle. But he is not dimin
ished he is transformed. The new name
bestowed upon him is a fitting recogni
tion of this. Thus, when comparing
Jacob's time of trouble to the time
through which, in the end, those loyal to
Christ must walk, it has been described
as "the best answer to their petitions"3
for cleansing and transformation.
Finally, we must never lose sight of
the fact that all these tribulations are but
a great prologue to something stupen
dous. They are but a prelude to a future
of joy beyond our wildest imagination.
Although we have seen happy mothers
with their babies on the other side of
childbirth, we haven't seen Christians
on the far side of the time of trouble.
But John gives us a glimpse of those who
gather on the sea of glass singing the
song of Moses and the Lamb. The Re
deemed, in triumphant chorus overflow
with praise toward the worthy Lamb
who was slain (Rev. 5).
The song of triumph
And that song of triumph can be
gin well in advance of our actual arrival
in heaven. In the words of theologian
Walter Wink: "The celebration of the
divine victory does not take place at the
end of the book of Revelation, after the
struggle is over. Rather, it breaks out all
along the way.... We have here no so
ber pilgrims grimly ascending the
mount of tears, but singers enjoying the
struggle because it confirms their free
dom. Even in the midst of conflict,
suffering, or imprisonment, suddenly a
hymn pierces the gloom, the heavenly
hosts thunder in a mighty chorus, and
our hearts grow lighter."4
As trouble approaches, let the song
begin.
Unless otherwise noted, scriptural
quotations are from the Revised Standard
Version.
1 For a discussion of the language and
cycles of salvation history see Jon Paulien,
What the Bible Says About End-Time,
(Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald Pub.
Assn., 1994).
2 Ellen G. White, The Great Contro
versy, (Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press Pub.
Assn., 1911), 614.
3 Ibid., 631.
4 Walter Wink, Engaging the Powers
(Minneapolis, Minn.: Fortress Press, 1992),
321.
Ministry/June-July 2000 39

^
. ^
LL
n the summer of 1980, a watershed conference at Glacier View, Colorado, 1
. examined an attempted refutation of the key pillars of Seventh-day Adventist
prophetic interpretation.
Richard M. Davidson, In the aftermath of that momentous
Ph.D., isj. N. Andrews meeting, a number of my ministerial col
chair and professor of leagues left the Adventist Church. One
Old Testament of these, my closest theological friend,
Interpretation, brought me a stack of books and said, "I
Seventh-day Adventist dare you to read these and stay an
Theological Seminary, Adventist!" As I read, questions that I had
Andrews University. never considered before struck at the
heart of the historic Adventist under
standing of prophecy in general, and of
the 2300 days in particular. Deciding to
study the issues carefully, I determined
to go wherever the truth took me, even
if that were, indeed, out of the door of
the Adventist Church itself.
So began long months of wrestling
with Scripture and agonizing in prayer.
I was not alone, either; many colleagues,
and others throughout the world
church, persevered in plumbing the
depths of Scripture in order to test the
prophetic underpinnings of Adventist
eschatology. I am deeply indebted to
many whose insights helped me greatly,
RICHARD
rT n
1
j
r m
particularly to the Daniel and Revela
tion Committee, which had been ap
pointed by the General Conference of
Seventh-day Adventists to grapple with
issues raised at Glacier View and else
where. Out of the decade of their de
liberations in the 1980s came seven
precious volumes of research that
helped change my life.2
Another Round
My testimony concerning the re
sults of the past two decades of biblical
study is straightforward: I have become
overjoyed as I have seen, ever more
clearly, that the historic Adventist pro
phetic interpretations dealing with the
last days can stand the closest investi
gation. Point by point the objections
and questions in my mind have steadily
melted away like hoarfrost before the
sun light of Scripture.
Little did I know right after Gla
cier View that almost twenty years later
M. DAVIDSON
Ministry/June-July 2000 41
I would, at the Seventh-day Adventist
Theological Seminary at Andrews Uni
versity, be privileged to teach these
prophetic verities. At the same time, little
did I realize that many of the same ob
jections to the Adventist understanding
of the end-time prophecies would resur
face twenty years later. In a new round
of barrages, books and videos have been
widely distributed, punctuated by the
personal appearances of former SDA
pastors, all attempting to dismantle the
prophetic basis of Adventism. The argu
ments of twenty years ago are recycled,
while the powerful research of the Daniel
and Revelation Committee and others
since 1980 is almost totally ignored.
The basic questions have the same
burning relevance now as twenty years
ago: Where are we in relation to the "full
ness of time" before the second advent
of Christ? What is the nature of prophetic
interpretation? How reliable is the
Adventist interpretation of Daniel 8:14?
What about the starting date for the
2300-day prophecy? Can we still main
tain the historical position in light of the
apparent long delay of Christ's return?
Is the day-year principle valid? And, fi
nally, What do these prophecies say about
the nearness of Christ's return?
Investigating the Judgment
One of the Adventist prophetic
teachings most widely rejected is that
of a pre-advent, investigative judgment
of God's people. Critics have charged
that this interpretation is based exclu
sively on a single text, Dan 8:14, and that
this text has been misinterpreted by
wresting it out of context.
In the first volume of the Daniel
and Revelation Committee Series, a
now retired associate director of the
Biblical Research Institute examined at
least 28 different Old Testament pas
sages outside of Daniel, all of which deal
with judgment from the sanctuary3.
Twenty out of these 28 passages con
cerned judgment of God's people and
many clearly involve the aspect of in
vestigative judgment from the heavenly
as well as the earthly sanctuaries.
There are numerous other biblical
passages where the sanctuary is not spe
42 Ministry/June-July 2000
cifically mentioned as the place of judg
ment, but where God's procedure is
indicated for dealing with His people
before executive judgment is meted out.
In fact, the Bible reveals that God's regu
lar procedures dealing with humanity
before ending the probationary time of
a given individual or people is to first
conduct an investigative judgment,
throwing open all the books, as it were,
so that it can be seen that He is just and
fair before pronouncing the verdict and
executing judgment.
We find God using this procedure
from the first entrance of sin, in Eden.
T
Mhec
he arguments
of twenty years ago are
recycled, while the powerful
research of the Daniel and
Revelation Committee and
others since 1980 is almost
totally ignored.
When in the cool of the day God comes
to Adam and Eve after they have sinned,
He initiates a legal trial or investigative
judgment before pronouncing the ver
dict and sentence. Liberal Protestant
scholar Claus Westermann points out
that after the Fall God comes for a "legal
process," a "trial," a "court process."4
Adam and Eve are placed on the witness
stand, given opportunity to testify, and
in their testimony perjure themselves and
finally reveal their culpability before God
pronounces them guilty.
Yet in the heart of that judgment is
the first gospel promise (Gen 3:15).
God's investigative judgment is not to
see whom He can damn, but whom He
can save. As much as anything else, the
judgment is a message of God's grace
and mercy.
The process continues in Genesis.
God comes for a legal investigation be
fore He brings the Flood (Gen. 6:1-13).
The same procedure is described in His
coming down to investigate at the Tower
of Babel (Gen. 11:5-7) and Sodom and
Gomorrah (Gen 18:20, 21). In each of
these cases, biblical scholars of a vari
ety of persuasions have recognized that
a legal trial procedure, an investigative
judgment, is involved5. God comes to
investigate, not because He needs to
know, but to reveal that He is fair and
just in all His dealings. In each case,
however, there is at the heart of the
judgment God's grace, revealing His
desire to save those under examination.
This legal procedure is often given a
technical name in the Old Testament a
rib, or covenant lawsuit; it regularly con
sists of a divine legal investigation of the
evidence before sentence is pronounced
and judgment meted upon God's pro
fessed covenant people, such as is done
in the covenant lawsuits or investigative
judgments described by Hosea and
Micah upon the Northern Kingdom, and
that of Malachi in the post-Exilic period.6
A covenant lawsuit or investigative judg
ment is also clearly present in the New
Testament with regard to Israel in A.D.
34 before their close of probation and di
vine executive judgment.7
The Ezekiel parallel
Perhaps the most dramatic and il
luminating of the examples of an
investigative judgment of God's pro
fessed covenant people appears in the
first ten chapters of Ezekiel. John the
Revelator's extended citations and allu
sions to Ezekiel 1-10 in his portrayal of
God's dealings with His people in the last
days hints that the events surrounding
the end of probationary time for the
Judean monarchy may be a type of God's
antitypical procedure for dealing with
His people before the final close of their
probation. And what was God's proce
dure in Ezekiel's day, in the closing years
of Judah's history before the curtain was
pulled, before executive judgment was
meted out? The procedure was an inves
tigative judgment conducted from the
Most Holy Place of the sanctuary!8
Ezekiel reveals not only the divine
procedure before the close of probation,
namely an investigative judgment, but
also God's desire to save His people.
Over and over in Ezekiel, the Lord cries
out, "Why will you die, O house of Is
rael? For I have no pleasure in the death
of any one, says the Lord God; so turn,
and live." (Ezek. 18:31,32; 33:11, RSV).
One can also read between the lines
and see similar characteristics in the way
God leaves the temple at the conclusion
of the investigative judgment. Ezekiel
10-11 shows that the celestial chariot
does not simply rush away as it had
come. The glory of the Lord slowly
mounts up from its place of investiga
tive judgment over the ark in the Most
Holy Place, moves to the threshold of
the temple and pauses. Then in His
chariot, the Lord slowly moves across
the courtyard, and pauses once more at
the east gate of the temple precincts. He
then slowly ascends in His throne and
crosses the Kidron Valley, pausing again
one last time now on the Mount of
Olives, just as the Son of man six cen
turies later, weeping over Jerusalem,
paused as well. It is as if the Lord is
loathe to close the investigative judg
ment, as if He is waiting for all to repent,
to turn, and to live.
Confirming evidence for the
investigative judgment
What do all these biblical examples
illustrating the patterns of God's proce
dure in judgment have to do with the
"fullness of time" before the second ad
vent of Christ? I believe the first prophet
in history to explicitly describe the Sec
ond Advent brings clarity on this point.
Enoch, who lived in the seventh genera
tion from Adam, prophesies about the
Parousia:" 'Behold, the Lord comes with
ten thousands of his saints, to execute
judgmenton all....' " (Jude 14-15.NKJV,
emphasis added). The second advent of
Christ is clearly a time of cosmic execu
tive judgment.9 If God is consistent,
acting at the end of time as He has
throughout history, then the executive
judgment at the Second Advent will also
be immediately preceded by an investi
gative phase. Thus, if we could know
when that cosmic investigative phase be
gins, we would have a clear sign that we
are nearing the executive judgment of
Christ's second coming.
In fact, just as God's executive judg
ments throughout history regularly
were preceded by an investigative phase,
Daniel reveals that the same thing hap
pens at the end of earth's history. The
book of Daniel not only indicates the
existence of a pre-advent cosmic inves
tigative judgment it also reveals when
that judgment would begin. Daniel 7
clearly indicates that a cosmic investi
gative judgment on behalf of the saints
immediately precedes the executive
judgment upon the "little horn" 10
power and Christ's reception of the
kingdom. 11 And the parallel chapter,
Daniel 8, indicates when this final Day
of Atonement judgment, or cleansing
of the sanctuary, would begin: after
2300 "evening-mornings." 12

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 This historicist Adventist interpre
tation simply builds upon the foundation
of the early church and the Reformation.
The historicist view of prophecy was the
view of the early church and of all the
Reformers, although today most other
major denominations except Seventh-
day Adventists have abandoned this
position in favor of counter-Reformation
systems. 13
Yet only the historicist view of
prophecy does justice to the whole of
Daniel. The preterists must say that
prophecy failed, and the futurists must
posit a gap where none exists. But the
historicists can be consistent with the
whole sweep of the prophetic time
prophecies, moving from the prophet's
day to the eschaton. 14
The year-day principle is crucial in
the historicist interpretation. This prin
ciple was also widely held by Reforma
tion theologians. Adventists have tradi-
tionally supported the year-day
principle from Ezekiel 4:6 and Numbers
14:34, only two texts, and both outside
of Daniel. Skeptical of such an approach
even before the Glacier View Confer
ence, I still remember my euphoria as I
read the DARCOM volumes, 15 which
show not two or three lines of evi
dence but 23 different biblical reasons
that validate the application of the day-
for-a-year principle to the time proph
ecies of Daniel as well as Revelation.
And most of this evidence is from the
book of Daniel itself!
I also still rejoice in the confirma
tory evidence for the dates regarding the
2300-days and 70-week prophecies of
Daniel 8 and 9. God preserved crucial
papyrus manuscripts buried for over
2000 years on a little island in the middle
of the Nile River; the discovery and trans
lation of these double-dated Elephantine
papyri from the fifth century B.C. helped
confirm that the date of Artaxerxes's first
decree was 457 B.C., as Adventists have
believed, and not 458.16 Further lines of
biblical and extra-biblical evidence have
been forthcoming, which show why this
decree and not some other, marked the
beginning of the 70 weeks and the 2300
days.17
No less stirring is the confirmation
44 Ministry/June-July 2000
of the ending date of the 2300 days-years,
October 22,1844.1 have heard it said that
the Adventist pioneers were simple and
unlearned, without the intellect or the
sophistication to do responsible biblical
study. Although most of the pioneers did
not have the advantage of higher theo
logical education, and certainly did not
have all the light, in my reading from the
more than 1000 pages of pioneer articles
related to the prophetic interpretation of
the 2300 days, 18 1 have been amazed at
the way God guided those humble, teach
able men to such profound and reliable
conclusions.
T
Mhei
he fact that
the final judgment has already
begun is the most
unmistakable sign of the
nearness of the Second Advent.
The date of October 22,1844 is such
a case in point. Scholarly detractors from
the Seventh-day Adventist teaching claim
that the Adventist pioneers chose a date
for Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) that
was proposed by an obscure Jewish sect,
the Karaites, rather than taking the date
accepted by the mainstream rabbinic tra
dition, which in 1844 came a month
earlier than October 22. The truth is that
this move proves just how studious the
pioneers actually were. They found that
the rabbinic method of calculating the
beginning of the religious year was based
upon fixed cyclical formulas for adding
a second 12th month to bring the lunar
calendar in line with the solar calendar.
The procedure is linked to the Spring
equinox, notto the Judean barley harvest
moon stipulation given in Scripture, and
thus often sets the festival dates one
month too early. Only the Karaites, who
rejected all rabbinic tradition and ac
cepted sola Scriptura, still preserved in
1844 the biblical method of reckoning
the festival dates, thus arriving at Octo
ber 22 as the correct date for the Day of
Atonement. 19
How interesting, too, that most of
the Karaites outside of Palestine had
abandoned the biblical method of reck
oning by 1844, and that shortly after
1844 even the Karaites in Palestine
ceased to use this method. I'm thankful
God kept a "remnant" faithful to the
biblical method at least until 1844!
And I thank God for His leading of our
pioneers in solidly founding this doc
trine upon Scripture, not tradition.
I have also been interested to learn
that in the last several years the Karaites
in Israel have once again begun to calcu
late the beginning of the year by the
biblical method, adding an extra twelfth
month when necessary so the barley will
be ripe to wave at Passover time. It so
happens that the beginning of this past
Jewish year (A.D. 1999-2000) presented
a calendrical situation almost identical to
that of 1843 -1844, and according to the
Karaite firsthand examination of the bar
ley in Israel, it was necessary to add a
"leap month" even though according
to rabbinic reckoning no extra month
was added. Thus the Day of Atonement
this past year, figured according to the
biblical way of reckoning, came during
the last part of October, not in Septem
ber, just as it did in 1844. 20 This is
contemporary corroboration for the
Adventist pioneers' correct calculation of
the Day of Atonement in 1844.
For those who may still be skeptical
about the Karaite calendar calculations,
I also rejoice that God has recently raised
up another witness to the accuracy of the
date, October 22,1844. By the study of
Babylonian astronomical and math
ematical data, it is now possible to arrive
at the precise date for the Day of Atone
ment in 457 B.C. and by mathematical
calculation to establish the modern
equivalent for this date in 1844. This
study was recently undertaken by Will
iam Shea and clearly demonstrates by
mathematical and astronomical reckon
ing independent of the Karaite calendar,
that October 22 is the correct date for the
Day of Atonement in 1844.21 We have a
sure and firm foundation for our faith.
The Adventist interpretation of the
date indicated by the text of Daniel 8:14
is solid, and so is the interpretation of
the significance of this date. There is not
space for a detailed exegesis,22 but I note
here that the word for "cleansed" in Dan.
8:14 is nidaq, which in Hebrew has nu
ances that can only be encompassed by
at least three different English expres
sions: "set right/restore," "cleanse," and
"vindicate." This breadth of meaning
provides the solution to the three prob
lems set forth in the previous verse (Dan.
8:13): the removal of the "continual"
ministry in the sanctuary, the "transgres-
sion that causes horror," and the
"trampling" of sanctuary. The "con
tinual" mediatorial ministry of Christ
needs to be "restored/set right"; the
transgression in the sanctuary needs to
be "cleansed"; and the trampling of sanc
tuary and host, which defamed the
character of God, calls for "vindication"
of God and His people. There are sepa
rate Hebrew words for each of these
ideas, "set right," "cleanse," "vindi
cate" but only one Hebrew word can
simultaneously encompass all three, the
word nidaq. Here is the wholistic mes
sage of the investigative judgment
encapsulated in a single word.
The good news of Judgment
The doctrine of the cosmic inves
tigative judgment before Christ's
second advent is the theme of numer
ous other biblical passages outside of
Daniel,23 including the "everlasting gos
pel" of the first angel's message in
Revelation 14:6, which includes these
words: "the hour of his judgment has
come!"
It has already come! While it is a
fearful time to those who have neglected
and rejected the provisions made for
their salvation, for those in Christ the
investigative judgment is a reason for
rejoicing. The investigative judgment is
the revelation to the universe of the
saints standing before God. It does not
Ministry
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put the salvation of God's people in Second Advent. The Day of the Lord has
jeopardy. arrived, and it was announced on earth
Since 1844, God's saints can joy by cosmic signs a great earthquake,
fully proclaim, "It's finally here!" Since the darkening of the sun and moon, and
the death of Abel the blood of the mar the falling of the stars, just as biblical
tyrs has been crying out," 'O Sovereign prophets and Jesus Himself predicted
Lord, holy and true, how long before (Joel 2:30, 31; Isa. 13:9, 10; 34:4; Matt.
thou wilt judge and avenge our blood 24:29; Mark 13:24,25; Luke 21:24,25).25
on those who dwell upon the earth?'" But, some may reply, "1844 is a
(Rev. 6:9, 10, RSV). At last the fullness long time ago! Does the investigative
of prophetic time has come. Just as in phase of the judgment have to take that
the first century, "when the fullness of long for God?" No, it doesn't. The in
the [prophetic] time [chronos] had spired evidence is clear that He could
come" (Gal. 4:4, NKJV), God sent forth have come within a few short years af
His Son to do His redeeming work on ter 1844, if His people had been faithful
earth, so at the time of the end when in giving the three angels' messages to
the "fullness of time" arrived,24 the Son the world. The whole world would have
of Man "came to the Ancient of Days" been warned, and Christ would have
to do His work of investigative judg come again.26
ment and then to receive the kingdom Many are tempted to get discour
(Dan. 7:9-14). That work of final judg aged by such a long apparent delay. But
ment has begun. Yom Kippur is here. I find every day of God's "delaying" His
Satan is finally to be silenced, the truth coming another evidence of His awe
can finally come out vindicating God some love for this world, not wanting
and His people. any to perish. In the antitype of the
The fact that the final judgment microcosmic investigative judgment of
has already begun is the most unmis Israel as portrayed by Ezekiel and six
takable sign of the nearness of the centuries later by the Gospel writers,
Ministry/June-July 2000 45
Christ is now, as it were, pausing on the
Mount of Olives, with tears in His eyes,
not willing to end probationary time for
His people if there is just one more who
will "turn andlive" (see Eze. 18:32). He
longs to gather together His children
like a mother hen gathers her chicks (see
Matt. 23:37). He has not slacked on His
promises, but is amazingly patient, not
willing that anyone should perish (see
2 Peter 3:9).
Conclusion
It's been a long time since Glacier
View. Many good people have left us
since then. At the same time, many good
people have stayed, convinced by the
clear testimony of Scripture that our
message is what we have been taught it
is: present truth. No doubt, more chal
lenges will come, and more good people
will leave. Undoubtedly, more people
will study the Bible and, convinced from
the overpowering evidence revealed in
that Word, stay faithful to these truths,
and to the Lord who has graciously
given us this message to proclaim to a
dying world.
1 For a report of the background to, and
proceedings of, this conference, see the "Special
Sanctuary Issue" of Ministry, October 1980, and
Frank Holbrook, ed., Doctrine of the Sanctuary:
A Historical Survey, Daniel and Revelation Com
mittee Series, vol. 5 (Silver Spring, Md.: Biblical
Research Institute, 1989), appendices D and E
(217-233).
2 These volumes are called the Daniel and
Revelation Committee Series.
3 W. H. Shea, "Biblical Parallels for the In
vestigative Judgment," Selected Studies on
Prophetic Interpretation, Daniel and Revelation
Committee Series, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: Bib
lical Research Institute, 1982), 1-24.
4 Claus Westermann, Creation, translated
by John J. Scullion (London: SPCK, 1974), 96.
5 For example, regarding Sodom and
Gomorrah, T. F. Mafico, "The Crucial Question
Concerning the Justice of God," Journal of The
ology for Southern Africa 42 (1983): 13, points
out that "Yahweh came down to make a judicial
investigation" (emphasis supplied).
6 The word rib explicitly introduces the
covenant lawsuits of Hosea and Micah: Hosea
4:1; Micah 6:1, 2. Sometimes the prophets use a
synonym, mivpat ("judgment"), as in Malachi
3:5; Ezekiel 5:8, etc. The recent scholarly litera
ture on the covenant lawsuit is immense. For
introductory discussion, starting bibliography
and numerous biblical examples, see James
Limburg, "The Root' [rib] and the Prophetic
Lawsuit Speeches," JBL 88 (1969): 291-304; the
article on rib in the Theological Wordbook of the
Old Testament, eds. R. Laird Harris, Gleason Ar
cher, and Bruce Waltke (Chicago: Moody Press,
1980) 2: 845-846; and Kirsten Nielsen, Yahweh
as Prosecutor and Judge: An Investigation of the
Prophetic Lawsuit (Rib-Pattern), JSOT 9
(Sheffield: JSOT, 1978).
7 See William Shea, "The Prophecy of
Daniel 9:24-27," The Seventy "Weeks, Leviticus,
and the Nature of Prophecy, Daniel and Revela
tion Committee Series, vol. 3 (Washington, D.C.:
Biblical Research Institute, 1986), 80-82.
8 See William Shea, "The Investigative
Judgment of Judah, Ezekiel 1-10," in The Sanc
tuary and the Atonement: Biblical, Historical, and
Theological Studies, ed. Arnold V. Wallenkampf
and W. Richard Lesher (Washington, D.C.: Re
view and Herald, 1981), 283-291; Shea, Selected
Studies, 13-20; and Richard Davidson, "The
Chiastic Literary Structure of the Book of
Ezekiel" To Understand the Scriptures: Essays in
Honor of William H. Shea (Berrien Springs,
Mich.: Andrews University Institute of Archae
ology, 1997), 71-93.
9 God executes judgment at His second
coming by dismantling the final confederacy of
the False Trinity, thus putting an end to the sys
tem of the little horn or Babylon; by resurrecting
or translating the righteous; and by destroying
the wicked. Of course, then comes a review judg
ment during the millennium, followed by the
final executive judgment, where the wicked in
cluding Satan and his angels receive punishment
"according to their works."
10 Identification of the "little horn" of
Daniel and the "antichrist" and Babylon of the
NT with the papal system is another point in
which the Adventist interpretation is upholding
the almost unanimous position of Reformation
scholars. My own personal count isolates some
170 different characteristics of the "little horn"/
antichrist/Babylon described in Scripture, and
only the papacy matches all of these character
istics.
11 See especially William Shea, "Judgment
in Daniel 7," Selected Studies, 94-131.
12 See especially, Gerhard Hasel, "The 'Little
Horn,' The Heavenly Sanctuary and the Time of
the End: A Study of Daniel 8:9-14," Symposium
on Daniel, Daniel and Revelation Committee Se
ries, ed. Frank Holbrook, vol. 2 (Washington,
D.C.: Biblical Research Institute, 1986), 378-461.
13 See LeRoy Edwin Froom, The Prophetic
Faith of Our Fathers, 4 vols. (Washington, D.C.:
Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1946-1954),
passim.
14 For examples of the contrast between
these three main schools of prophetic interpreta
tion, see Shea, Selected Studies, v-vi, 25-55
(regarding Daniel 8) and Gerhard E Hasel, "In
terpretations of the Chronology of the Seventy
Weeks," in Seventy Weeks, 3-63 (regarding Daniel
9).
15 Shea, Selected Studies, 56-93.
16 This evidence is written up by Siegfried
Horn and Lynn Wood, in The Chronology ofEzra
7, 2nd ed. (Washington, D.C.: Review and Her
ald Pub. Assn., 1970); summary in the Seventh-day
Adventist Bible Commentary, 3:100-104.
17 See especially Arthur J. Ferch, "Com
mencement Date for the Seventy Week
Prophecy," in Seventy Weeks, 64-74; and William
Shea, "The Prophecy of Daniel 9:24-27," in Sev
enty Weeks, 84-108.
18 Paul A. Gordon, ed., Pioneer Articles on
the Sanctuary, Daniel 8:14, the Judgment, 2300
Days, Year-Day Principle, Atonement: 1846-1905
(Washington, D.C.: Ellen G. White Estate, 1983);
synthesized in idem, The Sanctuary, 1844, and the
Pioneers (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald
Pub. Assn., 1983).
19 For a discussion of the Karaites and their
continuation of the biblical method of
calendrical calculation as opposed to the rab
binic departure from the biblical method, see
Froom, The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, 2:
196-199; 4:792-797.
20 See the data and discussion by Israeli
Karaites in several articles on the subject posted
on the Internet at the following website:
<karaite@netvision.il>.
21 See Shea, Selected Studies, 132-137.
22 For a detailed study of the meaning of
Daniel 8:14, see Hasel, "Daniel 8:9-14," in Sym
posium on Daniel, 378-461; on the specific
meaning of nidaq, see Richard M. Davidson,
"The Meaning of Nidaq in Daniel 8:14," Journal
of the Adventist Theological Society Til (1996):
107-119.
23 See, for examples, Leviticus 16 and 23:28-
32; Malachi 3:1-5; Matthew 22 (especially verse
11); 25:1-13; Hebrews 10:25-31 (note also the
implication of investigative as well as executive
future judgment also in Heb. 4:12,13; 6:4-8; and
9:23,27,28); Revelation 11:1-3,18,19; 14:6 (note
also the implication of pre-advent investigative
judgment in the sequencing of Rev. 6:10; 18:4-
8; and 19:2).
24 Note that Jesus Himself alludes to the
"fullness of time" concept with regard to the
time of the end. He explicitly refers to the "times"
of Daniel 7:25 in His Olivet discourse in Luke
21:24 (same word in the Greek of Luke and the
LXX of Dan. 7:25), and in the same verse alludes
to the "trampling" of Daniel 8:10, 13 (again the
same Greek root word in both). This is immedi
ately followed by the description of the "signs
in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars." He
thus implies that when the fullness of the pro
phetic time given in Daniel 7 and 8 is completed,
the end-time cosmic signs will begin. The book
of Revelation also indicates this fullness of time
concept: after alluding to the time prophecy of
Daniel 7:25 and 12:7, John states that "time
[chronos] shall be no more" (Rev. 10:6).
25 The Lisbon earthquake of 1755 is con
sidered by seismologists as "the largest shock
ever," the "greatest known earthquake" (see G.
A. Eiby, Earthquakes [New York: Van Nostrand
Reinhold, 1980], chapter 11); the "Dark Day" of
May 19, 1780, is referred to in Encyclopedias as
the "Great Dark Day," and has not been equaled
in intensity in North America since; likewise the
Leonid meteor shower display of Nov. 13, 1833
has not been matched since in extent and dura
tion. These cosmic signs came at the right
time "the first two "in those days" of the 1260-
year ascendancy of the papacy (Dan. 7:25; 12:7;
Rev. 11:2; 12:14; 13:5) but "after that tribulation"
had ceased in about 1750 (Mark 13:24), and all
of them before 1844 and the start of the
antitypical "Day of Atonement."
26 See, e.g., Ellen G. White, Evangelism
(Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald Pub.
Assn., 1946), 695, 696; The Desire of Ages
(Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1898),
633, 634.
Ministry/June-July 2000 47
 m
n
omfort one another with these words," wrote the apostle Paul in what is
perhaps the first of the New Testament writings (1 Thess. 4:18*).
John M. Fowler, Ed.D., Why comfort? What words?
is the associate director The church at Thessalonica faced
of education at the some serious theological and emotional
General Conference of problems. When the gospel reached
Seventh-day Adventists them through the work of Paul, they
and a consulting editor "received the word... with joy inspired
for Ministry. by the Holy Spirit" (1 Thess. 1:6). Their
faith was known everywhere (1 Thess.
1:8), even as they "turned to God from
idols, to serve a living and true God, and
to wait for his Son from heaven"
(1 Thess. 1:9, 10).
But time has a way of testing the
best of saints, and the believers at
Thessalonica were no exception. Theo
logical affirmation and emotional
reality seemed to have come to odds
with one another, rocking the faith of
the believers of that infant church. Once
they had been convinced of the cer
tainty of Jesus' coming again, but now
they were plagued with the reality of
what was happening around them.
Saints waiting for the "Son from
heaven" were dying one by one with
out seeing the fulfillment of that
ultimate hope, and the emotions of the
JOHN M.
50 Ministry/June-July 2000
D:
believers were torn. Death has a way of
raising the most disquieting questions,
and for the Thessalonian congregation
the question had become pressing,
What about the second coming of Jesus?
Is it in fact real?
The apostle faces the issues head on.
First, he takes up the emotional dilemma.
In the trauma of death Christians must
not "grieve as others do who have no
hope" (1 Thess. 4:13), he says. A Plato
may see in death a release from the pain
and corruption of life and a doorway to
a new life. 1 A Seneca may issue a call to
self-discipline in the face of death, in as
much as "the decisive hour [of death] is
the body's last, but not the soul's."3 A
Hindu may see in the endless possibility
of reincarnation a comfort to the griev
ing.3 But not Paul. To him, grief must be
placed within the perspective of Chris
tian hope and that hope is anchored in
the certainty that the "dead in Christ will
rise first" (1 Thess. 4:16). There indeed
lies the Christian comfort.
But when will the dead in Christ
rise? Paul's answer is clear: "For the Lord
FOWLER
himself will descend from heaven with
a cry of command, with the archangel's
call, and with the sound of the trumpet
of God. And the dead in Christ will rise
first; then we who are alive, who are left,
shall be caught up together with them
in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air;
and so we shall always be with the Lord"
(1 Thess. 4:16,17, emphasis mine).
Our appointment
To meet the Lord in the air. That is
our appointment. The second coming
of Jesus is God's climactic appointment
with the saints of all ages the dead and
the living. From Eden, saints of all ages
have looked forward to this appoint
ment. The Greek for "meet," apanteesin,
is packed with power and significance;
it connotes the return of a conquering
hero. The Hero of all ages, the King of
kings, the Sovereign of the universe is
returning, and His subjects will meet
Him in the air. Jesus is not the Ruler of
any one kingdom or one part of the
earth. He is the Sovereign of the cos
mos, the Lord of heaven and earth,
arriving to take His own that His own
maybe with Him forever beyond the
reach of sin, beyond the pain of death,
beyond the presence of sin.
That appointment in the air is the
"blessed hope." History is marching to
ward that cosmic event "the appearing
of the glory of our great God and Savior
Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13). When that
appointment becomes a reality, the
words of our Lord proclaimed hours be
fore the Cross will be fulfilled:" 'Let not
your hearts be troubled; believe in God,
believe also in me. In my Father's house
are many rooms; if it were not so, would
I have told you that I go and prepare a
place for you? I will come again and will
take you to myself, that where I am there
you may be also'" (John 14:1 -3, empha
sis mine).
When it comes to the certainty of
this appointment, the Scriptures leave us
with no doubt. From the moment Adam
and Eve crossed the forbidden frontiers,
from generation to generation since
then, God's people have looked to the
skies for the descending of the Savior and
for the ultimate fulfillment of their hope.
52 Ministry/June-July 2000
This expectation is not "a mere hypoth
esis, a postulate, or the projection of
human guesswork. It is and remains a
response based on the Word and the sure
promises of God. 'According to his prom
ise we wait for new heavens and a new
earth in which righteousness dwells'
(2 Peter 3:13)."4 To a study of this prom
ise we turn its grounding in the biblical
witness, its relationship to the kingdom,
and its implications for the Christian life.
The Second Coming and the
biblical witness
Enoch, eighth from Adam, spoke of
that appointment and saw the Second
Coming as a carrying out of God's judg
ment and a vindication of His character
n Testament books speak of this final cul
. . o meet the
Lord in the air. That is our
appointment. The second
coming ofJesus is God's
climactic appointment with
the saints of all ages.
(Jude 14-15). Job saw in it the ultimate
redemption:" 'I know that my Redeemer
lives, and at last he will stand upon the
earth'" (Job 19:25). Isaiah predicted a day
of victory for God's people when "He will
swallow up death for ever, and the Lord
God will wipe away tears from all faces,
and the reproach of his people he will
take away from all the earth" (Isa. 25:8).
On that day, the redeemed will shout for
joy:" 'Lo, this is our God; we have waited
for him, that he might save us. This is the
Lord; we have waited for him; let us be
glad and rejoice in his salvation' " (Isa.
25:9).
Micah saw the establishment of
God's holy mountain forever (Micah 4:1 -
5). Zechariah viewed the Second Coming
from the perspective of God's sover
eignty (Zech. 14:9). Joel spoke of a
mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit
enabling a universal witness by the young
and old in preparation for the coming of
the Lord (Joel 2:28-31). Zephaniah fo
cused on the coming of the Day of the
Lord which will bring about judgment
upon evil and the final redemption and
restoration of God's remnant to dwell in
safety (Zeph. 2; 3:9-20). Daniel saw in
Nebuchadnezzar's multimetal image the
march of this world's history toward its
culmination in the second coming of
Christ the rock that crushes all human
systems, opening up the way to the es
tablishment of God's eternal kingdom
(Dan. 2:34,35,44,45). Almost all the Old
mination of history in the establishment
of the eschatological kingdom of God
and the cosmic triumph of righteousness
in the great controversy between God
and Satan.
To the disciples, the return of Jesus
was no cunningly devised fable (2 Pe
ter 1:16). It was based on irrefutable
evidence. The disciples were eyewit
nesses of the life of Jesus. They saw Him
on the Mount of Transfiguration. They
saw Him walk the Sea of Galilee. They
saw Him raise Lazarus. They saw Him
feed the five thousand. They saw Him
command the powers of nature. Just as
these events were real, so was His prom
ise, " T will come again' " (John 14:3),
and His ability to keep that promise.
Jesus prophesied many events while
on earth. He said He would be betrayed
by one of His disciples (Matt. 26:21) and
denied by another (verse 34). He pre
dicted a scattering of His followers (John
16:32). He expected to be raised from
death on the third day (2:19-22). He pre
dicted the outpouring of the Holy Spirit
and the powerful witness of the early
church (16:7-15). He revealed Heaven's
plan for the building of the ekkelesia
(Matt. 16:18). He prophesied the de
struction of the temple and the
desolation of Jerusalem (Mark 13:2; Luke
19:41-44). He also said that He would
come again.
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 To the disciples, only one of these
prophecies remained unfulfilled the
return of Jesus. Everything else hap
pened as He had predicted. They were
eyewitnesses not only of the life of Jesus
but also of the fulfillment of His proph
ecies. What's more, even as the disciples
stood with disappointment at the sight
of their resurrected Lord ascend up into
heaven, having accomplished the re
demptive mission of the Father on the
Cross, they received God's direct assur
ance through angels who said: " 'Men
of Galilee, why do you stand looking
into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken
up from you into heaven, will come in
the same way as you saw him go into
heaven'" (Acts 1:11).
This same Jesus who was born in
Bethlehem when Caesar ruled the Ro
man Empire (Luke 2:1). This same Jesus
who said He had come to do His Father's
business (verse 49). This same Jesus who
came into Galilee, preaching the king
dom of God (Mark 1:14). This same
Jesus who during the governorship of
Pilate was crucified outside of Jerusalem
and rose again the third day. This same
Jesus whose mission represents God's
invasion of history in time and space
(Gal, 4:4) in order to atone for sin and
open a way for sinners to be redeemed
back to God. This same Jesus who is real,
personal, and no myth. This Jesus who
once walked this earth will return again
in the same way as He went up visibly,
audibly, personally, verifiably, and pur
posefully.
Is it any wonder, then, that the dis
ciples had no doubt at all that Jesus
would return? Is it any wonder at all that
the last promise of the risen Jesus is,
" 'Surely, I am coming soon' " (Rev.
22:20)? Is it any simple matter that the
Bible offers to every Christian the climac
tic prayer, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus"
(verse 20)?
Thus from its very inception, the
Christian church looked to the second
coming of Christ as the event that
would complete Christian redemption
(Heb. 9:27,28), test Christian patience
(James 5:7,8), ensure judgment (2 Tim.
4:1), encourage Christlikeness in the
believer (1 John 2:28; 3:2), usher in res
54 Ministry/June-July 2000
urrection and translation (1 Thess. 4:16,
17), guarantee a reunion with the saints
of all time (see 1 Cor. 15:51-58), con
firm the reward of the community of
faith (1 Thess. 4:16, 17), lead to a cos
mic conflagration and a forging out
from the wreckage of time an eternity
of triumphant joy (2 Peter 3:10-13; cf.
Isa. 65:17,18), inaugurate the millennial
reign in heaven (Rev. 20:1-6), and usher
in the kingdom of God (11:15; 12:10).
This joyous event underlying
Christian hope, faith, and destiny is not
a "pie in the sky by and by" as Karl Marx
. .n the face of
overwhelming scriptural
evidence for a literal, physical,
and verifiable return of Christ,
how could we take the Bible
seriously without taking its
greatest anticipation literally?
once ridiculed Christian claims for the
future. Nor is the Second Coming an
optimistic view of history that affirms
the spiritual presence of Christ in the
church and ensures a gradual realiza
tion of the kingdom of God, as liberal
theology would assert. The biblical wit
ness denies any suggestion rejecting the
visible return of Christ or any argument
equating the Second Coming to a
gradual betterment of society. The bib
lical teaching on eschatology requiring
a personal return of Christ is not a myth
requiring demythologizing, or the need
of adopting an attitude which says let's
"take the Bible seriously, but not liter
ally."5 No, in the face of overwhelming
scriptural evidence for a literal, physi
cal, and verifiable return of Christ, how
could we take the Bible seriously with
out taking its greatest anticipation lit
erally? As Denney so clearly argues: We
cannot "call in question what stands so
plainly in the pages of the New Testa
ment what filled so exclusively the
minds of the first Christians the idea
of a Personal Return of Christ at the end
of the world ... if we are to retain any
relation to the New Testament at all, we
must assert the personal return of
Christ as Judge of all."6
But what did Jesus Himself teach
regarding His second coming?
The crucial link between the first and
second coming
Christ's promise " 'I will come
again'" (John 14:3) resolutely affirms a
second coming as distinct from a first
coming. Hebrews underscores this dis
tinction clearly: "Christ, having been
offered once to bear the sins of many,
will appear a second time, not to deal
with sin but to save those who are ea
gerly waiting for him" (Heb. 9:28). He
who will come the second time is the
One who has already come. The mis
sion of the first coming was accom
plished at the Cross, whereby His death
Jesus bore the sins of the world and
where God has reconciled the world
unto Himself (2 Cor. 5:19). The mis
sion of the Second Coming is not to
atone for sin, but to gather into His eter
nal kingdom those who "are eagerly
waiting for him."
The Olivet discourse of our Lord
(Matt. 24; Mark 13; Luke 21) specifically
speaks of the Second Coming in terms
of a universal gathering of His disciples
" 'from the ends of the earth' " (Mark
13:27) into the kingdom of God. It is the
harvest time (Mark 4:29; Rev. 14:15). His
coming will be preceded by various signs
including the worldwide proclamation of
the gospel (Matt. 24:14). Just prior to His
coming will be a great tribulation (Matt.
24:15, 16) and conditions of spiritual
apathy and deterioration (Matt. 25:37-
39; Luke 17:28-30). These and other
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 signs are given not to work out a chro
nological time line as to when Jesus will
come, but to keep God's people in a state
of preparedness. The time of His com
ing is known only by the Father, not by
anyone else not even the Son (Mark
13:32, 33, 35). Watchfulness and readi
ness are the Christian's perpetual
response to the promise of the Parousia.
The fact of His coming is certain
Here are some areas of emphasis in whicli ^inistry isjnt^reisted:
literal, glorious, sudden, and universally
4 /Pastoral fH-actics, sach as preaching, evangeBsnti, ^traiisirtg;
visible (Matt. 24:27-31; Acts 1:11; Rev.
counseling; conflict resolution; time managenl^ttt, cpntinuirig
1:7). The time of His coming is not
education,;cOrigregat}6nal leadership and administratiott ; /;
known and is hidden in the mind of
4 Personal needs%jf the minister ; ^ > ^; ;; ;
;.4',,Professional; skills of the minister"' ;-^,--';,.;' P .'.;''; v -y-^,':-'_, ; ^:'- God (Matt. 24:36,42). The hiddenness
4 -;;Pastor-sppu;se!'teamrninistry;'',.;" '/,-, : ."- />:.--;' ' ,-'/:",' '-. -;. ;':.f;^. of the time does not nullify the
oughtness of His coming; nor should it
4 Pastoral farnilyheeds ; '" . v.-v '. .yVv'"^^-":..^-:1 ,'--'M'^
encourage time setting on one pretext
4 Worship, music, and church nurture ; ; % ; ;; 1
or the other. It only challenges the
#'.; Theological and biblical topics vyithin the^tlrarnewprk Q;
,; 1' :day:Adventist Relief and1'practice - :.:''. i -^^-' ' ;:;;;; \-K;;; T; i ';'', Christian to be a watchful citizen of the
kingdom of grace now, and a hopeful
4 Current issues in church life and rriission, particularly ^
>"./'-: the;Seventh-day Adventist^ehUrch;," , -': -: ','..'.''.-v-;";' J:';'." .;.'H^v"In;' citizen of the kingdom of glory to come.
An understanding of the kingdom
4 Health and lifestyle issues as they affect the jJastor ," C ;? of God makes this distinction and the
4 Reports on unique events of interest to pastors, such as cjfetirch
closeness between the first and the sec
growth, empowerment of laypersons, etc; : ond comings of Jesus even more clear.
4 Shbptalk iternsf ideas on how tq better the work of the!
Jesus came preaching the kingdom of
4: Brief reviews on books relevant to ministry ;1; ;s : i^ ; >
God (Mark 1:15) and announced that
4r 'Letters ipf^cornment on recent Ministry articles ;(no rjayniiept lot ^
"'''',. these) ". ' :''' '-'_'~\ ''.'"'^"''.'.''~ '''V./'.L-'.: :','.\ ; !V;'^.V^ the " 'kingdom of God is in the midst
of you' " (Luke 17:21). He also taught
His disciples to pray, " 'Thy kingdom
International' flavor v come' " (Matt. 6:10). Throughout the
When writing, it is good to avoid as far as possible the use of any ; Gospels, we note Jesus' teaching that the
phraseology or allusion that may be mystifying or irrelevant to j i
kingdom of God is already here (Luke
readers outside a given national culture. ,i / ; ^ ; 7:21; cf. Matt. 12:28; 11:12, 13; 4:23;
9:35; 13:11) andnotyethere (Matt6:10;
Articlesubinission ',;:,.' .'. .,'';' -.. : ;:]-' "",, ;'-""'- '.;".' ; "-VV'"C:: ;
8:11; 19:28; 24; Mark 13, Luke 24) a
It is advisable to cpnsult with the editor^^ before wpting and submitting present reality and a future prospect, an
an article for publication. , ; V experience as well as a hope. Some have
found these sayings regarding the na
."Article length , '/ . '.. .' , '' ' '\ ;.";j-.^ ';. ',-:', ;,5,'- : v>
ture of God's kingdom confusing, but
An average printed page in Ministry contains approximately 750 "Jesus' message is that in his own per
Articles with no more thajti 1 ,5QO words are^ preferred. Seldom are son and mission God has invaded
.articles with' more than 2;500 words accepted. f ^'(- ';"; '".;}:'%'? ':
human history and has triumphed over
evil, even though the final deliverance
will occur only at the end of the age."7
U.S. residents niay request a complete copy of .Pur,Waiter's :'Gukj[elinesl; The "already" settles the finality of
oby sending a^stamped, self-acWressed envelope to: : : * the kingdom. Christ has ushered it into
'.':; f-' ''"'- .;>> A^nfetJ^ fedjtpnal^Office ';'i-^'.-;,;{;-'^:; ^'V./1 '^-1^^; H: history: "The kingdom of God's grace
::^^''-''^i:'^^ :'' ;, ::'^ is now being established, as day by day
hearts that have been full of sin and re
bellion yield to the sovereignty of His
love."8 The "not yet" assures the physi
cal end of evil and the establishment of
the new earth: "The full establishment

56 Ministry/June-July 2000
of the kingdom of His glory will not
take place until the second coming of
Christ to this world."9 The one assures
the other; and both balance one an
other.
Peter was sure of the eschatological,
"eternal kingdom of our Lord and Sav
ior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 1:11) because
he was sure of the saving work of Christ.
"By his great mercy we have been born
anew to a living hope through the res
urrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
and to an inheritance which is imper
ishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept
in heaven for you, who by God's power
are guarded through faith for a salva
tion ready to be revealed in the last
time"(l Peter 1:3-5).
To illustrate the linkage between
the first and second comings of Christ,
consider a World War II analogy. In
March 1945, the allied landings in
Normandy effectually sealed the fate of
that war. The victory on the beaches on
"D-Day" sent signals around the world
that the allied forces would be victori
ous. But not until several months later
would V-Day come, bringing about the
end of the war. D-Day may be compared
to Calvary and V-Day to the Second
Coming. 10 The analogy is not perfect
but illustrates the point. The Cross as
sures the decisiveness of the victory over
the evil one. It was through the Cross
and the Resurrection that the decisive
battle was won. "This then means that
the hope for the future can now be sup
ported by faith in the past, faith in the
already concluded decisive battle. That
which has already happened offers the
solid guarantee for that which will take
place. The hope of the final victory is so
much the more vivid because of the
unshakably firm conviction that the battle
that decides the victory has already taken
place.'"11 The war may go on, the groan
ing for deliverance (Rom. 8:21) may still
be heard, and hope must yet await its ful
fillment "in the appearing of the glory
of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ"
(Titus 2:13), but there can be no doubt
that the end of the war, the ultimate de
liverance, and the joyous fulfillment of
hope have been assured in the decisive
victory of the Cross.
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J. Alfred Johnson II, Adult & Prison Ministries
fc<eve!a^ ion l-^ubiicafions
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Web site: www.revelationofhymn.com -
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Visa and MasterCard accepted Stephen Orian, President Dakota Conference of SDA
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sv/";r & handling wndu&il Christ Object Lesson* James W. Gilley, President Ark-La Conference of SDA
Conclusion as we hope and wait, we live responsibly
It is our privilege to possess a con and lovingly, readily reflecting the char
fident anticipation of our appointment acter and mission of the coming Lord.
with God when Jesus comes of us The appointment in the air is not
achieving the final completion of the far away.
journey to the kingdom that began
when we accepted the good news of the
Cross. It is the Man of the Cross who is *A11 Scripture passages in this article, ex
returning as the Lord of glory. The same cept as otherwise noted, are from the Revised
Standard Version.
Jesus who defeated sin and Satan on
Calvary is soon to descend in the clouds 1 Jacques Choron, Death and Western
of heaven to crush sin, death, and Sa Thought (New York: Collier Books, 1963), 47-
tan from the face of the universe. 52.
2 Ibid., 70.
In the light of our appointment it is 3 The Song of God: Bhagavad-Gita (New
crucial to follow the call of Paul to "throw York: The New American Library, 1964), 36-
off the deeds of darkness and put on our 38.
armor as soldiers of the light. Let us be 4 G. C. Berkouwer, The Return of Christ
(Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1972),
have with decency as befits the day" 10.
(Rom. 13:12,13, NEB). We may live in 5 Reinhold Niebuhr, The Nature and
the midst of darkness, but through the Destiny of Man (New York: Scribner, 1943),
eyes of faith we must ever be able to keep 2:50.
6 James Denney, Studies in Theology
the approaching dawn in view and live (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1976; re
so that we will not be taken by surprise. printed from 1895 edition by Hodder and
The Second Coming must keep us Stoughton, London), 239.
awake and sober (1 Thess. 5:6), and 7 George E. Ladd, A Theology of the New
Testament (Grand Rapids: William B.
must force us to self-examination, that Eerdmans, 1974), 67-68.
we may discover "what sort of persons "Ellen G. White, Thoughts From the
[we] ought... to be in lives of holiness Mount of Blessing (Nampa, Idaho: Pacific
and godliness, waiting for and hasten Press Pub. Assn., 1956), 108.
9 Ibid.
ing the coming of the day of God" "See Oscar Cullmann, Christ and Time,
(2 Peter 3:11,12). rev. ed. (London: SCM Press, 1962), 84.
That is what matters in the end. Even 11 Ibid., 86, 87.
Ministry/June-July 2000 57

Why the Seventh Day?
f Did the gospel rest Jesus introduced at His first advent
make the rest of the seventh-day Sabbath of Eden and
Sinai obsolete?
> How does the "new covenant" affect the "old,"
particularly as it relates to die question of law and
Sabbath?
Why the 7th Day? Is a 27-page booklet adaptation and
expansion of Will Evas two well-received Ministry editorial
articles on this topic. 1 he trim pamphlet format makes the
material more accessible and convenient for study and
distribution.
1-25 copies = us$3.00 each
26-50 copies = us$2.00 each
51+ copies = 'us$ 1.00 each
GC Ministerial Association + Resource Center Prkes include shipping
12501 OH Columbia Pike -f Silver Spring, MD 20904
Phone: 1-888-771-0738 (toil-free) or 301-680-6508 Fax: 301-680-6502
E-mail: paynec@gc.adventist.org +-Web site: www.ministerialassociation.com
the editor's note that Mueller's article
Letters continued from p. 3 contained "some alternative ap
proaches to those presented in
the article "Are We Afraid of the Coffen's articles." Mueller seemed to
Gospel?" were followed immediately be more complementary than an
by an ad for the book Jewelry in the alternative. Both writers had different
Bible. But if you keep articles like this purposes Coffen was more con
coming, I don't really care what you cerned about building a bridge
advertise. I also read articles on between those who tend to downplay
preaching, the gift of prophecy in our the authority in the Writings (Bible
day, clean and unclean meats, and and/or Ellen G. White) because of the
several others. I appreciate the fact human factors and those who may
that you are willing to push the take a more rigid view of the author
envelope a bit beyond where many ity of the Writings by not recognizing
Adventists normally go. I enjoyed my the limitations of the human factor.
reading so much I won't let my next Both writers properly recognized
Ministry gather dust before I read the divine/human dynamics in the
it. Mark Bresee, pastor, Chatta revelation/inspiration process.
nooga, Tennessee. Coffen's use of the light metaphor
complements my metaphor of the
4- You did all of us a great service to ellipse that is highlighted in my recent
present those three articles on book, Messenger of the Lord, chapters
inspiration and the authority of 22 and 23 especially. It seems to me
Scripture (Richard W. Coffen's "A that whenever we propose a model of
Fresh Look at the Dynamics of biblical inspiration, it should corre
Inspiration" [December 1999] and spond closely with Ellen White's own
"Thy Word is a Light Unto My Feet" experience of divine inspiration.
[February 2000] and Ekkehardt I am glad that Mueller raised the
Mueller's "The Revelation, Inspira question as to whether "inspiration
tion, and Authority of Scripture" really worked the same way in all
[April 2000]). For many readers, they prophets ... [because] the processes
developed new paths of thoughts. are not necessarily identical." Of
I was somewhat surprised with course, he is not pleading for degrees
58 Ministry/June-July 2000
of inspiration which is always a trip
into subjectivity; nevertheless, it is a
fair observation.
Mueller's interesting assertion that
"a biblical doctrine of inspiration must
be derived from the Bible and the Bible
alone" puzzled me somewhat. With all
we know of how revelation/inspiration
worked in the ministry of Ellen G.
White, far more information than we
can derive from biblical writers, do we
not find in her experience deeper
insights into how the process worked,
whether through Moses, Isaiah, Paul, or
White? What in her experience runs
contrary to what we can glean induc
tively or deductively from the study of
biblical prophets?
Using the sola scriptura principle
was exactly one of the main argu
ments that early Adventists used to
convince others of the genuineness of
the prophetic ministry of Ellen White.
That same argument could easily have
been used by Paul and his associates
when their contemporaries worried
that Paul was not canonical and thus
not under the authority of the sola
scriptura principle. The same human
limitations we see in White's pro
phetic ministry mirror the same
limitations we see in biblical writers
and vice versa. On the basis of logic as
well as of comparison between White
and biblical writers, it seems to me,
one must assume that the level of
authority is the same.
I am not suggesting in the
slightest that Mueller is drawing a
difference in the quality or degree of
authority between biblical writers and
White. I am only saying that some
could tweak what is written and come
off with that impression.
Mueller's treatment of "Jesus'
position on Scripture" is the best I have
ever seen in print. If I had seen it
before the second edition of Messenger
of the Lord had been printed, I would
have incorporated it with a clear
reference to its creator. Herbert E.
Douglass, Weimar, California.
+ I just want to take a moment to
express my deep appreciation for the
Pastor's Pastor article entitled "The
Racist Within Me" (February 2000). It
is very courageous to express your
convictions on such a sensitive issue
so clearly.
I pledge my support and pray that
leadership of our church will join this
vital crusade. G. O. Martinborough,
vice president, Inter-American
Division, Coral Gables, Florida.
Worship and praise
After 28 years in the ministry I
have concluded that statistics may
help grow numbers in the church
membership, but I don't think they
work well for the end result and that
is eternal life. Our major problem is
that we are always looking to the
world for ways to increase numbers.
We have compromised in many ways
and don't have much to show for it
here in North America.
Twenty-seven years ago I at
tended the North American Lay
Advisory held in Atlanta and spent a
whole week sitting on a committee
appointed to come up with some
catch for getting us into homes and
arranging Bible studies. We concluded
that "Christ's method alone" (Minis
try of Healing, 143) was the best
rary music to be introduced. In the
minds of many, the term "contempo
rary music" is synonymous with
religious rock. There are some
beautiful contemporary praise songs
that are suitable for worship but his
emphasis on drums and the need for a
"beat" suggests that he might be
recommending the off-beat rock
rhythm of much of today's modern
music. Arnold N. White, retired
pastor, Redding, California.
Editor's note: The central point of
Solomon's article was not to advocate a
particular form of church worship or
music, but to help pastors as they work
with their congregations in bringing
about desirable change in the worship
practices of a congregation. It is not the
objective o/Ministry to advocate
extreme forms of worship or worship
music, but rather to bring about
meaningful worship of the Lord.
Reaching our children
Sharon Cress's "The Jewels of His
Kingdom" (March 2000) is the most
complete and comprehensive state
ment I have ever read on the
importance and methods of rearing
our children in the church. I plan to
share this article with everyone I can
to increase the effectiveness of our
ministry in this area. Cecil F. McKee,
Huntsville, Texas.
4- I was greatly impressed by Sharon
Cress's article. I was especially
fascinated by the illustration of the
zebras. I never heard of that before.
How very practical for us who work
with little ones to stress the impor
tance of the early years of childhood,
which so often is neglected.
Margaret Nathaniel, Southern Asia
Division, Hosur, India.
April 2000 issue
The well-written article by Roy
Naden was timely. His analysis of the
basis for trust in the local congrega
tion was right on and desperately
needed in the churches with which I
am acquainted.
The Ministry team are sounding
the trumpet well! (Even though some
of the authors do not write as I would
on some issues.) Tom Stafford,
Battle Ground, Washington.

Jewelry In The Bible

method. At my church we sing from
the new hymnal and at times we go
further back to one of the older books
and sing some of those early hymns Angel Manuel Rodriguez
that stir the soul like none other. But
is it music that lifts me to the throne Jewelry in the Bible is a book designed to
of God or is it the gospel? Today one help readers cut through the questions,
of my younger elders preached his opinions, and even passions to arrive at
very first sermon. The music was from
biblical answers regarding jewelry.
the hymnal and the message was the
gospel of salvation through faith in Written by Angel Manuel Rodriguez,
Jesus Christ alone! No one left early associate director of the Biblical Research
and everyone felt the presence of the Institute of the General Conference.
Holy Spirit. Jim Cox, pastor,
usd
Cohutta, Georgia.

f John Solomon ("Worship and Ministerial Association Resource Center

Praise," February 2000) makes a valid
point regarding the importance of a
mixture of traditional hymns and
contemporary music in our worship
services. Unfortunately, there was no
caution as to the type of contempo
12501 Old Columbia Pike 4- Silver Spring, MD 20904
Phone: 1-888-771-0738 (toll-free) or 301-680-6508
Fax: 301-680-6502 > E-mail: paynec@gc.adventist.org
Web site: www. ministerialassociation.com
Also available at your local ABC

Ministry/June-July 2000 59

T b irty years
ago, June 7,
}Jesus gave
me the greatest gift
beyond His saving
grace. Sharon be
came my partner in
marriage, ministry,
mischief, and mission.
Because Sharon likes flowers, I
often plant rose bushes to commemo
rate our anniversary. If our garden
had sufficient, I would plant another
thirty roses as a growing testimony to
our years together. She will settle for
less, but I have ordered twelve new
bushes which I anticipate will soon be
filled with blossoms.
Before you conclude that I've got
"good husband" down pat, let me
assure you that there are times when
Sharon deserves roses and gets thorns
from her over-extended, self-absorbed
spouse. Every day does not bring roses,
accolades, or I ashamed to admit, even
compliments and gratitude.
Notwithstanding, I've made some
observations through the years which I
share as a tribute to my love for Sharon
as well as an encouragement for you.
Opposites attract. The proverb
states more truth than fiction. Sharon
and I are opposite in every measure
ment of personality, temperament, or
working styles. Despite this, or perhaps
for this very reason, our Father has
fulfilled his creative promise to "make
a helpmeet." This Biblical concept
means two completing halves of a
whole rather than an individual
created to run errands for the other.
Opposites are still opposites.
Neither conversion nor marriage
changes basic personality. A converted
extrovert does not become an
introvert and a spouse does not
change from thinking to feeling
modes of processing decisions just
because their partner is different. One
of our most challenging marital tasks,
even after thirty years, is to value and
60 Ministry/June-July 2000
PASTOR'S PASTOR
Thirty roses
utilize each others strengths rather
than ridicule or despise that which is
so different from ourselves.
Irritants remain. Growing together
does not guarantee perpetual harmony.
Each other's traits which frustrated us
back in courtship days, frustrate still.
Recently, Sharon and I strenuously
argued an issue which we thought we
had thrashed to resolution before our
wedding. However, if we focus on our
partner's positive characteristics, it
really is possible not to notice each
imperfection every day.
Fight fair. A magnet on our
refrigerator says, "Marriages are made
in heaven; but so are thunder and
lightening." I doubt the veracity of
those who claim never to utter harsh
words. Differences are both a reality
and a strength for marriages. Remem
ber, the opposite of love is not hatred,
but indifference. So disagree strongly;
but establish some ground rules. Stick
to the issue at hand rather than battles
of yore. I'm speaking of verbal inter
change only. Violence, whedier physical,
emotional, sexual, or verbal, has no
place in Christian homes. Afterwards,
reunite to enjoy peacemaking.
Don't forget to laugh. Sharon, in a
manner unlike any other, can identify
the humorous or ridiculous in even
the most complex situations. She
helps me process trauma by chuckling
over human foibles or bizarre
circumstances that, otherwise, would
overwhelm. There is little that we
cannot face if we can laugh ourselves
through the crisis.
Time is vital. Laughing together
means sufficient time together
vacations, days off to relax enough
to enjoy each other. Once when I had
extended an already-lengthy itinerary,
I returned with a gift that I believed
might compensate for my absence.
When that gift ended up at a garage
sale, it clearly showed my presence at
home was more desired than any gift.
Don't meet tears with logic. Too
many men want to "fix" problems
when all our spouses really need is a
sympathetic ear. Listening and
embracing are often more effective
than jumping to either conclusions or
actions.
Good marriages demand three
partners. We need Jesus to enjoy a
happy home. To the extent that we
include our Lord, our marriage
prospers. To the extent that we neglect
his Word, His will and His presence,
we falter. The chance of our success
depends more on our commitment
God included in a covenantal
relationship than on whatever
appears momentarily convenient
Ministry comes from surprising
sources. Sharon studied homemaking.
Do colleges still offer Home Econom
ics degrees? Reality made her a
minister. Our first conference presi
dent, Henry Carubba, saw potential
where neither of us had even thought
to search. As a evangelistic assistant,
colporteur, Bible instructor, and
pastor, Sharon developed skills in
soul-winning, nurture, and adminis
tration which have expanded our
team ministry.
Thirty years is not sufficient. Our
first year together sometimes seemed
never-ending as we struggled to
accommodate each other in the reality
of shared space, interactive time, and
renegotiated roles. Sometimes we
questioned even the basic sanity of two
individuals who had been so certain of
our love now stretching just to survive.
Three decades later, I wonder
where the years evaporated as I
conclude that Sharon is so fascinating
that we must share eternity together!
Thirty years are nothing in view of
eternity. I am so grateful for my spouse.
I am so thankful we are almost home!
 ...There is Camp Kulaqua and Pine Lake Retreat Center
Stay at one of the Seventh-day Adventist Retreat Why not bring them to Florida?
Centers in Florida and take advantage of: Just one call to Camp Kulaqua and
The great year round weather, Pine Lake reservations and we will
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Christian fellowship for you including:
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vegetarian menus Transportation*
Numerous activities Meals
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Theme Parks & some of to an executive lodge
the world's best beaches
* Natural springs & river Activities
* Relaxing in God's book Schedule planning
of nature
Purchase tickets to
Are yow planning a theme parks (If you
choose to do that)
convention or retreat
for your: *Yott can drive right to the retreat center
* Youth or Young Adult Group or you will need to provide your own
* Literature Evangelists transportation to Orlando International
Airport or the Jacksonville International
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* and MORE!
For further information, call Joyce Davis: 904-454-1351 or
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 BOOK REV I
The Unnecessary Pastor, by
Marva Dawn and Eugene Peterson
(Grand Rapids, Midi.: William B.
Eerdmans Pub. Co., 2000). Paperback.
256 pages. ISBN
0-8028-4678-5.
US$14.00.
Pastors are
UNNECESSARY
called to equip
PASTOR those they serve
with faith and
skills for living the
MARVA
DAWW
EUGENE
PETERSOH gospel way in the
midst of a culture
that is increasingly non-Christian. But
forces both subtle and obvious in
that culture can domesticate pastors,
too, and pressure them toward fulfilling
false expectations for charisma and
success, numbers and power. How can
pastors be strengthened for resisting
those false goals, for maintaining the
freedom to be unnecessary according
to the world's criteria?
In this volume, two of today's
most respected authors help pastors
recover their gospel identity and
clarify their vision of Christian
leadership. Eugene Peterson and
Marva Dawn reconnect pastors with
biblical texts that equip them to be
countercultural servants of the gospel.
In his chapters Peterson explores 1
and 2 Timothy and Titus, drawing
from them scriptural images for
pastoral identity. In alternating
chapters Dawn turns to Ephesians for
instructions to churches seeking to
live faithfully against societal rules.
Packed with encouraging insights
from experienced practitioners, this
book is a must for anyone involved in
church leadership or for anyone now
preparing for ministry.
Experience God in Worship,
Published by Group Publishing, Inc.,
Loveland, Colorado, 2000.
In the heart of every pastor and
62 Ministry/June-July 2000
worship leader is the desire to see
people draw close to God... to truly
experience His presence in their lives.
Not surpris
ingly, that's why
many people
come to church,
too. They want
to come
together with
other Christians
to learn more
about God and
experience His reality. It is no wonder,
then, that worship is such an important
part of every church service.
This book brings together
perspectives on the future of worship
from some of the most respected
worship leaders and pastors. By
exploring this broad range of worship
styles, pastors and worship leaders
will discover fresh and innovative
approaches. They will find ideas that
will inspire and motivate them. The
worship models may be from different
traditions, but they deliver insights
that will help achieve the ultimate
goal of people experiencing God in
worship.
Discover how to create worship
models for every generation ... and
still allow each group to joyfully
worship God through music, tradi
tion, and more.
Anticipation: Waiting on
Tiptoes for the Lord, by Hyveth
Williams (Nampa, Idaho: Pacific
feyveth Press Pub. Assn.,
2000). Paperback.
255 pages. ISBN
0-8163-1789-5.
US$13.99.
While society
anticipation spins at a mad
dening pace,
addicted to speed,
where are those who are "waiting," as
on tiptoes, for God? In this new book,
Pastor Hyveth Williams uses an
engrossing combination of humor,
scholarship, and personal experience
to illustrate the power of living in
anticipation of the Lord's return.
If you ever grow weary of waiting
on God to come through, Anticipation
will help you find your second wind
so you can run and not get weary,
walk, and not faint.
Problem Solvers and Soul
Winners: A Handbook for
Deacons and Deaconesses, by
Vincent E.
White, Sr.
(Huntsville,
Alabama: AVA's
Book Publishers,
1999). Paper
back. 88 pages.
US$14.95.
This book
outlines clearly
the duties of deacons and deacon
esses. As a pastor you will be pleased
by its concept to empower deacons
and deaconesses to become problem
solvers and soul winners. For church
elders who are searching for practical
how-to tools to assist in working with
the deacons and deaconesses, this
book is for you. This is the first book
of its kind that shows how to apply
the nine-step problem-solving process
in the framework of the social systems
approach during membership
visitation. Buy it for a reference or as
a training manual.
Seasoned with Laughter, by
Sharon M. Cress, Published by the
Ministerial
Association of
the General
Conference,
paperback, 106
pages, US$6.95.
Seasoned
with Laughter is a
collection of tales
about parsonage

pandemonium and ministerial
mayhem. This collection of parsonage
humor is a fun read and also is a
missionary endeavor to raise funds for
equipping pastoral spouses with the
tools needed to spread the gospel in
neighborhoods all over the world.
SHOPTALK
Net '96 Graphics
Pastor John Blake, coordinator of
the Alberta Conference deaf ministry,
in cooperation with Advent Digital
Media of Vancouver, Washington, has
prepared a special adapted Easy
English edition of the NET '96 CD-
ROM computer graphics.
The CD-ROM contains all the
NET '96 graphics, but about 85 percent
of the texts have been changed to use
an Easy English version.
Some of the title slides have also
been changed to Easy English. The
CD was originally prepared to use in
deaf ministry. However, it is now also
available for anyone who would find
Easy English helpful in evangelistic or
sermon presentations.
The CD contains the original NET
'96 texts and pictures, placed side-by-
side for comparison with the Easy
English adaptations. This is done in
Microsoft PowerPoint, and each slide is
also included in plain JPEG format as
in the original Advent Digital CD. An
excellent free viewer, image adapter and
public presenter [IView32.exe] is also
included, so that it is not absolutely
necessary to have PowerPoint.
Let Ministry move with you! Send address changes to Jeannette Calbi, Ministry, 12501 Old Columbia Pike,
Silver Spring, Maryland 20904, or email us at <calbij@gc.adventist.org>. Please notify us eight weeks in
advance.
Please print clearly:
First Name
Old Street Address
City _______
- New Street Address
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$25 for your ideas
Send us your suggestions about how pastors can make daily ministry more
effective. If we publish your idea, we'll send you U.S.$25.00. If your idea
promotes a product or service, we'll be glad to consider it without the
possibility of payment. Send suggestions to
Ministry Editorial Office
12501 Old Columbia Pike
Silver Spring, Maryland 20904
Please print your your name and mailing address on each submission.
To receive payment, U.S. residents must include their Social Security number.
If you already have a licensed copy The hi-tech church
of the NET '96 CD-ROM, then this Church fund raising is always a
special edition is available for $50 big need for every church! Church
postpaid in the North American ministries can use technology to reach
Division (extra postage for other donors and other constituents who
countries). If you do not have it, then are not able to leave their homes to
the CD is available along with a regular attend church. Some may want to use
NET '96 CD set for US$200.00 through chat rooms to give members an
the Alberta Conference Deaf Ministry opportunity for online dialogue with
Department, 37541 Highway 2, Red the pastoral staff and even special
Deer, Alberta, Canada T4E 1B1. guest speakers.
Pastor Jeff Jordan, a deaf pastor Some ministries are beginning to
in the Georgia-Cumberland Confer use the Internet to build relationships
ence, has taken this CD-ROM as his by delivering audio and video stream
base, and in October/November 1999 ing capabilities. The Internet is the least
gave a full "live" 20-lecture series of expensive way of communication in
evangelistic meetings in American the current market. To increase the
Sign Language. This full signed series efficiency of their contact with donors
is now available on ten video cassettes and clients, organizations can create
for US$80.00 plus shipping. Web sites to post online brochures and
For further information contact: newsletters, a calendar of events, capital
Pastor John Blake, 30 Country Ridge campaign updates, and an immediate
Close, Lacombe, Alberta T4L 2H1; way for people to respond to direct-
phone: 403.782.4255 or email: mail letters. Douglas R. Rose, Grand
<canadiandm@attcanada.net>. Prairie, Texas.
Middle Initial Last Name
State Zip Code Country
State Zip Code Country
 David B. Smith
shares stories,
team every weekend interviews, and
H|Pf: /at ftmr through illustrations that
show how the
""i^^&l special
Bible's message is
being lived in our
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Ken Wade brings the Bible to

- tis life with background studies
that will help you remember
and apply the message of
each book and story.
Special guests share experiences that reveal how
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